Do Vikings think J.J. McCarthy will ask for trade after Kyler Murray signing?

Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell suggested that recently signed quarterback Kyler Murray will compete with 2024 first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy for the starting job this coming summer. 

However, it was later reported that the Vikings possibly trading McCarthy at some point this offseason "cannot be completely ruled out." NFL insider Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk offered more information on why that may be the case. 

Vikings had this J.J. McCarthy "concern" last offseason

"Last year, when the Vikings were trying to figure out what to do about their quarterback depth chart, there was a concern that McCarthy would possibly ask to be traded if Sam Darnold or Daniel Jones returned, or if Aaron Rodgers had been signed," Florio wrote. 

The Vikings let both Darnold and Jones reach free agency in March 2025. Minnesota also basically picked McCarthy over Rodgers. 

That said, McCarthy reportedly struggled to learn all of the playbook and with "the challenge posed by some of the more elemental aspects of being the face of a franchise" last year. Perhaps more worrisome, injuries limited the 23-year-old to just 10 regular-season starts over the first two pro campaigns of his young career. 

Meanwhile, Murray's one-year deal with the Vikings is worth only $1.3M because the Arizona Cardinals owed him $38M in fully guaranteed money for next season. Thus, O'Connell has no financial reason to hand Murray the starting job this spring. 

"There’s been no discussion of a possible McCarthy trade," Florio added. "There’s been no indication that he wants one, that the Vikings are interested in trading him, or that another team would do a deal." 

How Vikings reportedly feel about J.J. McCarthy after Kyler Murray signing

A report shared that "the Vikings are not ready to give up on" McCarthy despite adding Murray to the roster. On Monday, ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano touched upon how the Vikings view McCarthy following the signing of Murray. 

"Murray is very likely to end up starting ahead of McCarthy, unless a light goes on this offseason and McCarthy performs well enough in the summer to beat him out," Graziano said. "But the Vikings aren't ready to give up on McCarthy just yet, and they're hoping Murray's arrival has a positive impact on him."

That could happen, or McCarthy could decide that he wants a fresh start away from a coaching staff that clearly doesn't feel as strongly about him as it did roughly 12 months ago.