The trade keeps looking worse for Minnesota. Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio called the New York Giants’ acquisition of quarterback JJ McCarthy a “steal” during a media session on Tuesday, November 3, according to Pro Football Talk — a backhanded compliment from a rival coach that stung precisely because the evidence keeps backing it up.
The start that changed the story
McCarthy, the Vikings’ former No. 10 overall pick, completed 20 of 28 passes for 252 yards with zero turnovers against a highly skilled Houston Texans defense in Week 7, winning his first start with the Giants. He is just 23 years old, still had nearly two full seasons left on his rookie contract when Minnesota dealt him, plus a team option for a fifth year in 2028.
Fangio even misstated the price in Minnesota’s favor — he called it a sixth-round pick, when the Giants actually gave up a fifth-round pick in 2027, Heavy.com noted. Either way, the point stood: New York bought a young starting quarterback for a Day 3 draft pick.
The standings say the rest
New York, coming off its Week 8 bye, leads the NFC East at 4-2-1, with the Dallas Cowboys second at 3-5. The Giants visit Philadelphia on Sunday, November 8, and opened as 3.5-point road favorites against the Eagles, according to DraftKings Sportsbook — a remarkable line for a team that traded for its quarterback in late September.
The two teams do not meet Minnesota in the regular season this year. But both the Giants and Vikings currently lead their divisions, which means a postseason meeting between McCarthy and his old teammates is a live possibility — the kind of game the NFL schedule-makers dream about.
Also on the trade wire
The McCarthy deal is not Minnesota’s only trade-week headache. With the November 10 trade deadline approaching, the Vikings are among the teams reported to be interested in star running back Jonathan Taylor, who could play elsewhere as early as Week 9, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport. If Baltimore — 4-4 and without quarterback Lamar Jackson for at least six more weeks with a thumb injury — decides to sell, Derrick Henry is another name in the frame: the league’s rushing-attempts leader (158 carries through eight games) is in year one of a two-year, $30 million deal, and a team acquiring him after Thursday night’s showcase against Jacksonville would take on only about a $3 million cap hit.
In San Francisco, the 49ers already made one blockbuster move before the deadline, acquiring DeForest Buckner from Indianapolis — but a deal to bring back wide receiver Jauan Jennings from Minnesota fell apart, with Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer reporting Jennings rejected the return. Rapoport, speaking on the Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, stopped short of confirming Jennings scuttled the deal himself, saying only that there was a time he thought it would get done.
What to watch next
Sunday in Philadelphia is the test. If McCarthy beats the Eagles — the team whose coordinator just called him a steal — the Giants will have more than a division lead. They will have the defining trade story of the season, and Minnesota will have a very long week before the deadline.
Sources: Heavy.com, “Vikings Under Fire After Giants Robbed Team in JJ McCarthy Trade” (Nov 4, 2026); Heavy.com, “Vikings Trade Pivot Abandons Jonathan Taylor for Derrick Henry” (Nov 4, 2026); Heavy.com, “Ian Rapoport Gives Update on WR Who Rejected Trade to San Francisco 49ers” (Nov 4, 2026); Pro Football Talk via Heavy.com (Nov 3, 2026).
