The Minnesota Vikings struggled on October 23, falling 37-10 to the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium on “Thursday Night Football.”
After a promising 3-2 start to the 2025 NFL season, Minnesota have now dropped consecutive games, slipping to 3-4. As a result, the team faces pressing questions about what they will do at quarterback.
Carson Wentz has been dealing with a left shoulder injury while leading Minnesota to a 2-3 record since taking over as the starter. Nonetheless, with the extra rest, everything indicates that J.J. McCarthy will return as the Vikings’ starting quarterback following a six-week recovery from a high right ankle sprain.
Nonetheless, if McCarthy returns and struggles in Week 9 against the Detroit Lions, NBC Sports’ Mike Florio wonders whether Minnesota could jump into the quarterback market and bring in a familiar face.
“If J.J. McCarthy plays against the Lions and face-plants the way that Carson Wentz did [on Thursday night], that’s when you have to ask yourself, are we tanking here or are we going to try to salvage this season?” Florio said on the October 24 edition of “Pro Football Talk.” “And could we bring [Kirk Cousins] home?
“He’s available. We know that there’s no one else that’s even whispered the possibility of trading for him. It would take a season-ending injury to a quarterback on a team that would not go next man up that would say we want to activate the Kirk Cousins option. But he knows the offense, he knows much of the personnel, he knows much of the coaching staff.”
Why Should the Vikings Consider Trading for Kirk Cousins?
Over the offseason, Minnesota decided to hand the reins to McCarthy after letting Sam Darnold leave. As a result, many will question why the Vikings should consider bringing the Atlanta Falcons veteran back. Despite how puzzling it sounds, Florio explained why it’s a move that makes sense.
“I assume McCarthy will play. So if he is just abysmal, if it’s the three quarters against the Bears without waking up in the fourth, and if you play like you did against the Bears for three quarters against the Lions, the fourth quarter ain’t going to matter. The fourth quarter is going to be as irrelevant as [Thursday] night.
“That’s the one caveat to my go-ahead and ride with J.J. McCarthy and see what you have. If it is just a disaster, then maybe you activate the Cousins option. You keep J.J. McCarthy. He’s under contract for two more years. You find a veteran quarterback for 2026 to compete, if not supplant, just like the Colts did.”
All Signs Point to J.J. McCarthy Returning
McCarthy has already returned to practice for the Vikings, but Minnesota likely didn’t want to risk its young quarterback aggravating his injury and being sidelined even longer. After the loss to the Chargers, coach Kevin O’Connell revealed the latest regarding the Michigan product and his potential return to the field.
“If J.J. is healthy, J.J. will play,” O’Connell said (h/t Kevin Seifert of ESPN). “That’s been the case since the injury. That’s always been kind of my mindset, and I believe we’re right — hopefully — around the corner from seeing him be healthy, have a week of preparation and go compete.”
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