In terms of Minnesota Vikings summer roster construction, NBC Sports‘ Mike Florio dropped his version of a bomb on Tuesday, suggesting Minnesota could outright waive quarterback J.J. McCarthy. The theory arrives as McCarthy was considered a viable candidate to dethrone Kyler Murray for the Vikings’ QB1 job as recently as 2-3 weeks ago.
“With Max Brosmer also on the roster, McCarthy could be in danger of not being on the roster by Sunday, when the rosters reduce to 53. The Vikings undoubtedly would try to trade him, since the balance of his 2026 pay ($1.075 million) and all of his 2027 compensation ($3.775 million) are fully guaranteed,” Florio scribed.
“The Vikings may have to pay a significant chunk of the money in order to facilitate a deal. Ultimately, the Vikings may have to simply waive McCarthy.”
It’s a pre-roster-cutdown bombshell.
How Realistic Is Florio’s J.J. McCarthy Theory?
Florio Takes the McCarthy Conversation Somewhere New
As early as last weekend, trading McCarthy was the boldest take out there. Florio has thickened the plot with the outright release speculation.
Murray owns the QB1 post beyond the shadow of a doubt, and Wentz could seize QB2. That leaves McCarthy and Max Brosmer on the depth chart at QB3 and QB4. Florio believes Minnesota would first try to trade McCarthy, but he went further, indicating the Vikings might drop their former No. 10 overall pick amid roster cuts due by Sunday.
Generally speaking, waiving McCarthy just doesn’t add up for the Vikings – – unless he can’t humanly exist with Murray in a locker room. In that situation, team chemistry would obviously suffer.
McCarthy hasn’t played well in the preseason after an offseason that implied he would improve. Still, getting rid of the guy and getting nothing for him is just a wild assertion.
Split Reps Need Some Context
Splitting reps at practice is a frightening development for McCarthy, but it doesn’t automatically mean Minnesota has to cut him.
Wentz and McCarthy sharing second-team snaps could be a final evaluation before roster decisions, especially given McCarthy’s rough preseason and Wentz’s slightly more reliable performance. McCarthy has shown flashes of potential this summer, including leading Minnesota’s second-team offense to a game-winning touchdown during a two-minute drill against Baltimore in joint practices.
Nevertheless, it’s perplexing that a former Top 10 pick in his third year is surrendering backup reps. Even without adopting Florio’s radical claim, it’s clear that the Vikings’ coaching staff is still assessing his roster spot.
In fact, McCarthy feels like the Vikings’ version of Anthony Richardson more by the minute.
Trading McCarthy Is One Thing; Waiving Him Is Another
Suppose Florio is correct, and Minnesota is flat-out done with McCarthy. Trading for something – – anything – – is much wiser than booting the guy for nothing. The Vikings may not get more than a late-rounder for his services, but in the court of public opinion and in practical terms, extracting a draft pick from another team would be easier to stomach.
Cutting him outright would mean abandoning its recent franchise quarterback investment – – throwing in the towel. Another team could still value a 23-year-old passer with only 10 NFL starts and developmental leeway. The last thing the Vikings want is to become the league’s laughingstock, as they were in February when Sam Darnold won a Super Bowl.
Final Preseason Game Could Decide How Crazy This Really Is
McCarthy has one last chance to make Florio look silly – – if Florio’s take is even remotely true in the first place. Minnesota travels to Denver on Friday for its final preseason game, and so long as McCarthy’s health is good to go – – he got banged up against the Ravens – – he should play at least one quarter and perhaps more versus the Broncos. Wentz, too, will see action as the pair continues the “other” quarterback battle of the summer.
If the Vikings release McCarthy by Sunday, according to Florio’s theory, he’d go down as a bigger bust than Christian Ponder, whom Minnesota drafted in the 1st Round 15 years ago.
Who would’ve seen that coming after McCarthy won the NFC Offensive Player of the Week in his first career start less than a year ago?
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VikesNow Verdict: A McCarthy trade has become quasi-imaginable after losing the QB1 battle and dividing backup reps with Wentz. Waiving him would be shocking. Keep an eye on the Vikings’ locker room harmony.
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