Clock now ticking on J.J. McCarthy as Vikings franchise QB

The Minnesota Vikings have turned the front office on its head, firing general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah on Friday. It’s a rather remarkable turn of events, considering that this comes mere months after he inked an extension with the franchise. On the flip side, it’s not as shocking when looking at Minnesota’s recent misses both in free agency and at the NFL Draft. Most notably, the Vikings appear to have botched their quarterback situation entirely, which is enough to get anyone axed.

With Adofo-Mensah now out the door, it stands to wonder where the organization will go from here at that central position, specifically as it relates to starter J.J. McCarthy. Adofo-Mensah traded up to select McCarthy out of Michigan with the No. 10 overall pick at the 2024 NFL Draft, and then let Sam Darnold depart the following offseason (despite a 14-3 record as the starter during the 2024 regular season) to install him as QB1. 

In 2025, McCarthy went 6-4 as the starter and struggled mightily over those 10 starts (missed seven games due to injury). By stark contrast, Darnold maintained his superb play, and Adofo-Mensah’s firing comes in the shadow of Darnold leading the Seattle Seahawks to Super Bowl LX. 

Below, we’ll dive into what this firing may mean for the future of McCarthy in Minnesota.

The clock is ticking for McCarthy to prove himself

In the aftermath of Adofo-Mensah’s firing, Vikings owner Mark Wilf said that he expects to conduct “a thorough search” for a new general manager after the 2026 NFL Draft. In the meantime, executive vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski will lead the team effectively as an interim GM through the draft. 

This is important from McCarthy’s perspective on a couple of different fronts. On the one hand, a new general manager is on the way, one who is not tied to McCarthy in any fashion, which could make it easier for them to cut ties with the young quarterback in some form or fashion. On the other hand, that GM will not arrive until after the draft, which means they will not be there in free agency either. 

With Minnesota well over the salary cap at the moment (-$48.9 million) and picking No. 18 overall in what is slated to be a thin quarterback draft class, there are not a lot of clear avenues for an outright replacement at the given moment. 

That sets up McCarthy with a make-or-break season in 2026, which could essentially be looked at as an audition for the incoming general manager before he begins putting a bigger stamp on the roster beginning in 2027. If he continues to look like the quarterback we saw for the balance of last season, his days as Minnesota’s QB1 will be done in short order. 

It is worth noting, however, that McCarthy did start to come around over his final four games from a production standpoint, leading the Vikings to a 4-0 record over that stretch with a passer rating of 100.4

That glimmer of hope, coupled with cap constraints, could be enough for Minnesota to give McCarthy another look in 2026, but he’ll certainly be on thin ice. 

Could the Vikings trade McCarthy this offseason?

While it may seem unlikely for the reasons we discussed above, it also isn’t out of the question that Minnesota does look for a total reset at quarterback and elects to move on from McCarthy. While Rob Brzezinski was with the organization when McCarthy was drafted, we don’t know if he has the same belief/affinity for him as Adofo-Mensah did. If he doesn’t, the door could be open for a departure, especially during an offseason where the QB market isn’t robust, both at the NFL Draft and in free agency. 

For instance, Fernando Mendoza is the prize of their year’s draft, but the Indiana quarterback is earmarked for the Las Vegas Raiders, who hold the No. 1 overall pick. With Oregon’s Dante Moore elected to stay in college and forgo the draft, the pool is shallow for QB-needy teams. McCarthy, who just turned 23, could provide rebuilding teams with youth at the position, and if they believe they can tap into his potential, could look to make a move. 

Some teams that could make sense in that regard are: 

Miami Dolphins 

It’s a foregone conclusion that the Dolphins will move on from Tua Tagovaila in some capacity this offseason, following his in-season benching in 2025. On top of that, there’s a new regime at Miami Gardens with GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley coming over from Green Bay. Sitting with the No. 11 overall pick, they are out of range for any blue-chip quarterback prospect and are in a similar salary cap bind as the Vikings (currently $30.3 million over), so they’d need to bring in a cheap option like McCarthy, who is on his rookie deal. 

Arizona Cardinals

Similar to Miami, the Cardinals are in a situation with their veteran quarterback, Kyler Murray, which seems like it will result in a departure this offseason, creating a need at the position. Arizona is still currently looking for a head coach, but the franchise is looking down the barrel of a rebuild that’ll likely take a few seasons. They own the No. 3 overall pick at the 2026 NFL Draft, but as we noted, there may be no viable quarterback sitting there when they are on the clock and could be better served using that selection for other needs. McCarthy could give them a lottery ticket that could spike the turnaround if he can put it all together, especially with weapons like Trey McBride, Marvin Harrison Jr., and Michael Wilson at his disposal. 

New York Jets

New York tried to revitalize Justin Fields last season, and it blew up in their face, so they may not be too keen on kicking the can with another first-round talent. That said, they may not have a bunch of options. The Jets were burned the most by Dante Moore staying in school, because they sit with the No. 2 overall pick this spring, which meant they would’ve either been able to select him or Mendoza to fill their need under center. Maybe they take a swing at Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with the No. 16 overall pick, but there’s also the possibility of them simply addressing other needs with those two first-rounders and opting for a different route at quarterback. They could roll the dice with McCarthy via trade, and if it doesn’t work out will be in a 2027 NFL Draft pool that is slated to be much deeper at quarterback.  

Potential QBs targets for Minnesota

As we noted, the Vikings are currently tangled in knots with the salary cap. Even when they get their books in order and are cap compliant, they likely won’t be able to swing for anything major. That said, some interesting options could be on the table. 

Jones played well enough for the 49ers last season that he likely earned himself another nod at being a team’s franchise quarterback. Filling in for the injured Brock Purdy for eight games, Jones led the Niners to a 5-3 record and had a 97.4 passer rating over that stretch. One of the biggest issues with McCarthy thus far has been his inability to get Minnesota’s top weapons — like Justin Jefferson — regularly involved. They wouldn’t have nearly as much of an issue in that regard with someone like Jones. The former first-rounder only has a $3.9 million cap hit next season and a base salary of $2.8 million, making him extremely affordable for a team like the Vikings in 2026. That said, San Francisco likely won’t give him up for nothing, and he’ll likely look for an extension upon any trade to make him the starter, which is something to note. 

Given the way Atlanta restructured Cousins’ contract at the end of the 2025 regular season, he’ll almost certainly be released at some point this offseason. That creates a lane for the Vikings to reunite with their former quarterback and do so within their ability from a salary cap perspective. Entering his age-38 season in 2026, Cousins is not a long-term answer for the Vikings, but one that could keep them competitive as they search for a developmental signal-caller over the next few drafts in the event they do move off of McCarthy. Filling in for the injured Michael Penix Jr. last season, Cousins was capable, owning a 5-5 record as the starter that included a 4-0 run over the final month. 

Willis is likely to have plenty of suitors this offseason as the Packers quarterback is slated to hit free agency. If Minnesota could make it work financially, this could be the best option of the bunch, especially if Willis continues to flash as he did in relief with Green Bay this season. The 26-year-old started just one game for the Packers due to an injury to Jordan Love, but did impress over his short showing. Willis came in under duress after Love’s injury and completed 9-of-11 passes for 121 yards and a touchdown in an overtime loss to the Bears in Chicago. The following week, he started and completed 85.7% of his passes (18-of-21) for 288 yards, a touchdown, and added two rushing touchdowns, albeit in a loss to Baltimore. There was enough there where offensive-minded coaches like Kevin O’Connell could look at Willis and see untapped potential.