JJ McCarthy Has Concerning Issues With Vikings: Report

Third-year quarterback JJ McCarthy is in the midst of a battle for the starting job with Kyler Murray, and there could be cause for the Minnesota Vikings to trade their first-round pick in 2024.

McCarthy struggled in his first regular season with Minnesota last year, throwing for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions, prompting the team to sign Murray in the offseason. It wasn’t just the results on the field that made the Vikings nervous about their quarterback situation.

Per Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom, McCarthy “had some issues with his maturity and demeanour behind the scenes” during the regular season.

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Murray is believed to be ahead of McCarthy in the “pecking order” this summer, which could explain why the former Michigan quarterback gave a non-friendly answer this week about his competition with the 2019 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

"It's just like two guys in a classroom," McCarthy said. "He sits on one side; I sit on the other side. And it's the coach's responsibility to teach us and coach us."

One NFL general manager told La Canfora that McCarthy and Murray aren’t likely to get along, and McCarthy would probably appreciate a trade from Minnesota.

"I think he wants out of there," the GM said. "I think he's wanted out of there since they signed Murray. Those personalities are not going to be a good fit."

The Vikings spent considerable draft capital on McCarthy, trading up to the No. 10 spot to land a quarterback they thought would be the future successor to Kirk Cousins. La Canfora believes the market value for McCarthy would be low at this point, with an injury needing to be a catalyst to get him out of Minnesota.

“If O'Connell couldn't get much from him and opted to sell low on him, that would resonate around the league,” Canfora wrote.

While that might be the case, O’Connell already had to deal with the fallout of letting Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones walk in free agency last season. Jones was successful in his first season in Indianapolis, signing a two-year contract this offseason despite suffering an Achilles injury late in the year.

Darnold went on to win a Super Bowl during his first season with the Seattle Seahawks.

O’Connell’s best move here is to do what’s best for the team and make sure the Vikings can focus on getting back to the postseason.

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This story was originally published May 29, 2026 at 3:37 PM.