Giants bench QB Jameis Winston in favor of J.J. McCarthy during Saints game

New York Giants quarterback J.J. McCarthy. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Giants bench QB Jameis Winston in favor of J.J. McCarthy during Saints game

By Paul White | Last updated Oct 18, 2026 4:39 PM ET

The New York Giants were optimistic entering this season for the first time in a long time. They hired John Harbaugh to be the head coach and were hoping for a second-year leap from quarterback Jaxson Dart.

However, Dart went down with multiple ligament tears in his knee in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Rams and will be sidelined for the rest of the season. Jameis Winston was inserted as the starting quarterback, but it didn’t take long for the Giants to trade for J.J. McCarthy from the Minnesota Vikings.

Winston has managed to keep the team afloat in Dart’s absence, leading them to a 2-0-1 record in his starts before this week. However, turnovers have been his downfall, throwing four interceptions and losing a fumble in his four starts.

Giants replace Jameis Winston with J.J. McCarthy at quarterback

Harbaugh finally had enough against the New Orleans Saints, replacing Winston with McCarthy after a pair of interceptions.

JJ McCarthy is now in at QB for the #Giants.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 18, 2026

To be fair, New York was down 34-10 when the quarterback change happened, so maybe it was simply to prevent an injury. But Harbaugh is no stranger to midseason changes at the position, and it’s notable that Winston was removed from the game after an interception.

Despite the 34-27 home loss, the Giants are still 3-2-1 and maintain the lead in the NFC East thanks to the other teams’ struggles. They have a real shot of winning the division for the first time in a decade, but they need efficient, turnover-free football from the quarterback spot if that is going to happen.

It remains to be seen if McCarthy will be the starter going forward, but he was excellent in the fourth quarter and nearly pulled off an improbable comeback. He had 243 yards and a touchdown in just one quarter, so Harbaugh has a tough decision to make.

Paul White

Paul White is a contract writer from Philadelphia who attended Penn State University. He has contributed hundreds of stories about the NFL and NBA over the years and now brings that experience over to Yardbarker. He is a lifelong Philadelphia sports fan looking to bring the same passion from his city to sports media.

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