The Baltimore Ravens haven’t had the best run of backup quarterbacks in recent years, and getting someone they can develop into an elite player — a reclamation project who could be a starter for another team 1 day — might be a great move for the franchise.
SB Nation’s Jarrett Bailey predicts 1 might be on the way sooner or later, with a trade pitch that would bring the Ravens a former 1st-round pick in Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
McCarthy, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, has had a rough road with the Vikings, where he’s already been replaced, for all intents and purposes, with former No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray after just 1 disappointing season as the starter.
“The writing is on the wall for J.J. McCarthy,” Bailey wrote on July 22. “The Vikings won 14 games with Sam Darnold, didn’t bring him back, and then watched him win a Super Bowl while they limped to a 9-8 record. McCarthy completed less than 60 percent of his passes with 11 touchdowns to 12 interceptions. He gets dealt to Baltimore and Jesse Minter, who won a National Championship with McCarthy at Michigan as the Wolverines’ defensive coordinator.”
In this case, the value of McCarthy in a trade might be negligible — think something similar to when the Dallas Cowboys traded a 4th-round pick to the San Francisco 49ers for former No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance in 2023.
In McCarthy’s case, the Ravens would be smart to start by offering up a 2027 5th-round pick to see if the Vikings might bite.
Vikings: One Bad QB Decision for the Ages
Minnesota went 14-3 in 2024 with Sam Darnold as the starting quarterback in 2024, and instead of bringing him back, they let him leave in free agency, where he signed a 3-year, $100 million contract with the Seattle Seahawks and led them to a Super Bowl win in his 1st season.
In their place, the Vikings decided to ride with 2024 1st-round pick (No. 10 overall) J.J. McCarthy, who couldn’t stay healthy and looked like 1 of the NFL’s worst quarterbacks when he was on the field.
That came after McCarthy missed his entire rookie season due to a torn meniscus, becoming the 1st NFL quarterback picked in the 1st round to miss his rookie season due to injury in league history.
The Vikings signed former No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray for 2026 — almost certainly their 3rd starting quarterback for the season opener in the last 3 seasons.
If Murray plays well on a 1-year contract, he could be in line for his own massive free-agent contract in 2027.
Either way, McCarthy no longer figures into Minnesota’s plans for the future.
Ravens QB Uncertainty All About Lamar’s Contract
The Ravens know they have their quarterback for 2026 in Lamar Jackson — and they hope for the rest of his career.
The uncertainty around the position all stems from Jackson’s need for a contract extension sooner rather than later. Despite being under contract for 2 more seasons on the 5-year, $260 million contract extension he signed before the 2023 season, Jackson is once again in line to become the highest-paid player in NFL history.
According to Spotrac, Jackson’s current market value is something in the range of a 4-year, $253.7 million contract extension, which would pay him approximately $64.3 million per year in terms of average annual salary.
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