There is 1 place a down-on-his-luck NFL quarterback knows they can go to reboot their career — that place is the San Francisco 49ers.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox called the 49ers the “Top Landing Spot” for Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy — the most down-on-his-luck NFL quarterback in the world right now after the 2024 1st-round pick was officially benched in favor of Kyler Murray before his team even plays a preseason game.
“The San Francisco 49ers don’t have an aging star atop the quarterback depth chart, but they could give McCarthy an excellent chance to reestablish himself as Brock Purdy’s backup — something Mac Jones did last season,” Kay wrote on August 11. “Jones currently serves as Purdy’s understudy, but he is entering the final year of his contract and has drawn trade interest … Jones is very likely to parlay his two-year stint in San Francisco into a starting opportunity next offseason. If McCarthy could make his way to the Bay Area, he could potentially do the same.”
J.J. McCarthy: First-Round Bust, World-Class Meme
McCarthy, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, missed his entire rookie season in 2024 due to a meniscus injury.
He was 1 of the NFL’s worst starting quarterbacks in 2025, battling injuries and becoming a ridiculous meme over his insistence on giving himself a gameday alter ego — “Nine” — in honor of his jersey number.
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.
Vikings Made 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, the Vikings let him leave in free agency. 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 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.
The interesting thing about McCarthy possibly landing in San Francisco would be that it follows a pattern.
Darnold brought his career back to life as a dutiful backup to Purdy in Shanahan’s offense. Darnold was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft and bottomed out with the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers before landing with the 49ers.
Jones did the same thing. He was the No. 10 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft and bottomed out with the New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars before landing with the 49ers. He’ll almost certainly get a chance to start somewhere in free agency in 2027 if he’s not traded before that.
In an all-time ironic twist, the quarterback most closely associated with Shanahan’s time in San Francisco, Purdy, was the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft — Mr. Irrelevant
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