McCarthy, 22, is familiar with sharing the Vikings’ QB room with a veteran with significant starting experience. Wentz and 2024 starter Sam Darnold were both top-three picks with a combined 150 starts before joining Minnesota.
Darnold was a stop-gap option ahead of the No. 10 pick McCarthy in 2024 but exceeded expectations and led the Vikings to 14-3 record and a playoff appearance. Minnesota let him walk to Seattle in the offseason, handing the starting reins to McCarthy and adding Wentz late in the summer to back him up. Daniel Jones, a former No. 6 selection who finished the 2024 campaign on Minnesota’s practice squad, also left in the offseason to Indianapolis.
If the Vikings add a new QB in the 2026 offseason, he could be more Wentz than Darnold or Jones, capable of pushing McCarthy and showing him the ropes but not a signal-caller in his prime.
McCarthy has had his moments in his second NFL campaign, leading a furious comeback against Chicago in Week 1 and beating the Lions in his return from the ankle injury. But he’s had as many if not more down days, most recently in Week 12 against Green Bay, when he threw for just 87 yards on 19 attempts, tossing two picks and taking five sacks in a 23-6 defeat.
Who could join McCarthy in Minnesota in 2026? There are a slew of veteran options, including Russell Wilson, Marcus Mariota, Tyrod Taylor, Joe Flacco, Jimmy Garoppolo, ex-Vikings Case Keenum and Teddy Bridgewater and, yes, Wentz. Jones and Aaron Rodgers are also not currently under contract for the upcoming campaign, but they are starting-caliber QBs; plus, Jones will surely be extended and Rodgers is more likely than not headed to retirement.
Whoever accompanies McCarthy in the QB room next season, he will be pivotal alongside coach Kevin O’Connell, a supposed QB whisperer, in bringing the Michigan man along and unleashing his first-round potential.
