No, it's not merely in regard to his failed attempt to fend off Kyler Murray for the starting job. In a broader sense, the best path forward for both parties in the wake of not naming him the starter appears to be going their separate ways before the 2026 regular-season campaign begins. And Minnesota may already be laying the groundwork to walk down that road with their 2024 first-round pick.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell named Murray the team's starter on Aug. 11. Since then, McCarthy's stock has only continued to sink. Now, a player who entered camp duking it out for the top job saw himself splitting second-team reps with veteran Carson Wentz just two weeks removed from the Murray announcement.
While it's somewhat jarring to see such a fall from grace, it's not surprising if you've been paying attention to Minnesota -- more specifically McCarthy -- this summer. There doesn't appear to be a lot of improvement in his game, which continues to run hot and cold. Week 2 of the preseason exemplified that to a T.
In one moment, he's evading pressure and completing a 50-yard pass to Tai Felton down the right sideline. Then, four plays later, he overthrew Myles Price for what would've been a wide-open touchdown on a fourth-and-goal attempt. JJ McCarthy misses Myles Price WIDE OPEN in the end zone. pic.twitter.com/Ix8VJrEPTe It's those continued misses on what should be layup throws that are opening the door for Wentz to potentially leapfrog him on the quarterback depth chart as the primary backup to Murray.
In the brief windows that we've seen both quarterbacks, Wentz has proven to be the better option. Here's a look at how both quarterbacks stack up through two weeks of the preseason: While that's a snapshot of this summer, Wentz was also the better quarterback on Minnesota's roster last year. In all, he started five games for the Vikings, while McCarthy was sidelined with a high ankle sprain.
Over his first three starts, he completed 69% of his throws, while averaging 253 passing yards per game, and totaled five passing touchdowns with just two interceptions. Wentz suffered a shoulder injury in a Week 5 matchup against the Cleveland Browns, but gutted it out to start two more games before landing on injured reserve. Naturally, those numbers dipped in those remaining two games, but Wentz did give the Vikings' passing offense a jolt when he was healthy last year, something that doesn't ring true when McCarthy's been under center.
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