When the Minnesota Vikings took J.J. McCarthy 10th overall in the 2024 draft, the message seemed obvious: this was the quarterback they planned to grow with. But a rookie season cut short by a torn meniscus and a bumpy follow-up year have changed the tone around the building. And it seems like Kevin O’Connell may already be bracing for life beyond McCarthy.

The rumor mill is loud. With McCarthy struggling, the Vikings are being linked to veteran options for 2026. Names like Daniel Jones and even Aaron Rodgers have surfaced as possible targets. None of this is subtle.

“The likeliest way they can keep [Justin Jefferson], or make him happy, is Daniel Jones,” ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky pushed the thought.

And then there’s former Viking Anthony Barr, who once delivered the hit that fractured Rodger

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