Eric Dahl

The J.J. McCarthy trade debate is heating up with Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz now in the building. Here’s the breakdown of what a potential 2026 swap would entail: Option 1: Pre-Draft Trade • The Return: Immediate help with 2026 picks • The Risks: Selling at his lowest value & thinning the QB room • The Books: Costs ~$400K in cap space with $6.36M in ‘26 dead money • The Upside: Saves $6.9M in ‘27 cap and provides a "clean slate" for 2027 Option 2: Summer/In-Season Trade • The Return: Future help with 2027 picks • The Risks: Injury or poor preseason play could tank his value further • The Books: Saves $2.78M in ‘26 and $3.78M in ‘27 • The Dead Money: Spread out at $3.18M across ‘26 and ‘27

Carson Wentz's last two seasons: 2023 -- QB2 for Matthew Stafford (Nov-Jan) 2024 -- QB2 for Patrick Mahomes 2025 -- QB2 turned starter for 5 games in MN. Threw for 300+ twice. Posted a slightly below average passer rating. You think he's signing as QB3 on March 19? 🤔 Nah. Wentz was almost certainly told he's QB2 over JJ McCarthy. Otherwise, he would have surveyed the QB landscape until summer like he did last year. McCarthy is almost certainly QB3 now.

I'm a sucker for a good play, especially a good tragedy. There is nothing better than a battle between a protagonist and an antagonist unfolding on stage. Playing out before our eyes within the Vikings organization is a modern-day NFL drama, with J.J. McCarthy cast as the protagonist and Kevin O’Connell as the antagonist. If you pay close attention to the language, the more direct tone, the increased specificity, and the body language in the pressers, you can see the story taking shape. This is a play where J.J. McCarthy is clearly positioned as the main character. He is being placed into situations of simulated success, not necessarily to secure his long-term role, but to increase his perceived value, possibly for a future trade to make room for a quarterback who better fits O’Connell’s offense next year. Justin Jefferson is the true money-maker for the Minnesota Vikings. The Wilfs, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, and Kevin O’Connell all know this. Because of that, the decision appears to have already been made. A quarterback change is coming in 2026, and J.J. McCarthy will not be the long-term starter in Minnesota. Because J.J. McCarthy is a good kid and a professional, O’Connell is currently helping him, putting him in positions to succeed while quietly paving his way out of Minnesota, so another team can eventually enjoy the upside of a quarterback still on a rookie contract via a future trade. Stay tuned. Buckle up. Changes are coming.

Skor North has completely closed the door on any possibility that maybe, just maybe, JJ McCarthy is a bust. Their audience has completely bought into this bullshit, it’s honestly sad. Now they’re saying that you can’t trust KOC to draft and develop ANY qb just bc JJ sucks…