Vikings’ Top Trade Chip Apparently Has a Name

The Minnesota Vikings have already traded outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard this offseason to the Philadelphia Eagles , and if the club ships one more notable player elsewhere, it might just be quarterback J.J. McCarthy , according to Fansided.

That website identified every team’s most tradeable player this week, and McCarthy got the nod for Minnesota .
‘ QB Plan Creates a New Trade Question

Wynston Wilcox: McCarthy is Vikings’ Main Trade Commodity

On a list of big names and prominent bench players, McCarthy drew Wilcox’s attention for the Vikings, and he wrote about a trade possibility : “J.J. McCarthy is going to be the most talked about backup quarterback aside from Ty Simpson at this point.”

“McCarthy’s days are numbered in Minnesota. The Vikings even thinking about pursuing Anthony Richardson could very well be the end of McCarthy in the Twin Cities. It’s not a matter of if McCarthy will get traded, it’s when. Depending on how he plays this offseason, he’ll either get dealt before Week 1 or closer to the deadline. Should McCarthy be traded ? Yes.”

Murray has been backhandedly mentioned as a trade candidate from the moment Minnesota signed Kyler Murray in free agency.

Why Would the Vikings Trade McCarthy? They Need QB Depth.

Trading McCarthy now would be an act of sheer folly. The Vikings have already learned this lesson the hard way. Quarterback instability derailed two of their last three seasons, and last year’s ambitious plan quickly imploded. Minnesota went all-in on McCarthy, yet surrounded him with a backup corps of Sam Howell , Carson Wentz , and Max Brosmer .

Predictably, the group failed to stabilize the team. McCarthy struggled, too. The Vikings missed the playoffs, and the organization found itself back at square one, facing the same uncomfortable questions.

That context underscores the importance of Kyler Murray’s arrival. He wasn’t acquired to render McCarthy obsolete. Rather, Murray was brought in to prevent a single injury or a poor month from capsizing the entire season — a crucial distinction. Murray provides the Vikings with a robust Plan A, and potentially even a legitimate Plan B if McCarthy wins the quarterback battle at training camp.

McCarthy’s upside remains undeniable; you don’t simply discard a young quarterback with 1st-Round pedigree without due consideration. Murray, likewise, is valuable for his proven track record of success in the NFL.

It’s the core of the issue: Minnesota finally possesses two viable options at quarterback. To jettison one simply to alleviate perceived crowding would be, frankly, a dumb move.

On the other hand, now is the best time to barter with teams if McCarthy is expendable. Consider this: if he balls out in 2026, well, Minnesota will just keep him. Why would it trade a quarterback who took the next step in his development ?

Conversely, if McCarthy succumbs to injury woes — again — or flatly performs poorly, a quarterback-needy team won’t trade much for him next offseason. In the summer of 2026, the Vikings might have their last chance to grab a mid-round pick for McCarthy. By the 2027 offseason, if McCarthy has not been anointed the quarterback of the future in Minnesota, it will mean he didn’t take off in 2026 and that his value via trade is similar to Anthony Richardson or Will Levis right now — a 5th-Rounder or less.

Now is the time to trade McCarthy if the Vikings secretly know he’s not the long-term solution.

Zone Coverage‘s Chris Schad scribed earlier this month, “For a team that is high on Murray and Carson Wentz , and would probably like to see Max Brosmer’s development through, getting rid of McCarthy is starting to become a likely outcome. It could develop into a rage-trade situation. However, the biggest reason to throw in the towel is that, if McCarthy succeeds, it’s unlikely to happen in Minnesota.”

“Of course, there has to be an element of anger in a rage trade, and the Vikings have a valid argument. They gave McCarthy the keys to the car last season, and he treated it like Jordan Addison drives a rental. His performance wasn’t just bad. It was embarrassing on a Cleveland Browns – or New York Jets -level, which is something this franchise tries to avoid.”

If one pretends that the Vikings, indeed, have interest in offloading McCarthy , these teams might come knocking:

McCarthy would especially make sense in Arizona because Carson Beck is the one young option for the future in the desert after the Cardinals ended the Murray era . The Colts, too, would add up if Indianapolis trades Anthony Richardson.

The NFL trade deadline is November 3rd.