EAST RUTHERFORD - J.J. McCarthy had just finished his first post-game interview as quarterback of the New York Giants in the aftermath of Sunday’s 34-27 loss to the New Orleans Saints.
This followed his first extended action with the team, as he came off the bench in relief of Jameis Winston and led a frenzied fourth quarter comeback that fell one throw short when a potential McCarthy touchdown pass to Isaiah Likely wound up incomplete in the back of the end zone.
“I'm not pleased when you lose,” McCarthy said after throwing for 243 yards and rushing for a team-high 26 yards with a touchdown pass over the game’s final 11:25. “At the end of the day, no matter what happens, we try to get that 1-0 win each and every week, and I've got to look back at the tape and find ways to get better. I was just really proud of the guys around me, just responding and always keeping that belief that we can go win this thing. That's going to be huge going down the stretch, and I'm just really proud of the guys around me. I felt like I was protected every single play I was in there. Offensive line played great, receivers caught the balls, running backs did their thing when they needed to, and it was just a really awesome group to be a part of.”
When McCarthy finished with the scrum of reporters, he walked back to the far corner of the locker room where his stall and the one assigned to Winston are located.
Winston was there and McCarthy met the veteran quarterback with an embrace after what was his first defeat in four starts since Jaxson Dart’s season-ending knee surgery.
Whether that was a changing of the guard at the position for the Giants for the remainder of the season remains to be seen.
Giants coach John Harbaugh said he was “honing in” on making a decision as far as which quarterback would start Sunday in Houston against the 2-4 Texans. We should gain clarity on the situation by the time the Giants hit the practice field for their 1 p.m. session, and the fact that Harbaugh did not just say Winston would remain QB1 when speaking with reporters Monday opened the door to speculation that the former Minnesota Vikings franchise QB was receiving serious consideration to ascend to the top of the depth chart.
Winston has thrown seven touchdowns with five interceptions as the Giants' starter, going 2-1-1.
While McCarthy came here with a clean slate after being acquired by the Giants for a 2027 fifth-round pick, entering a situation that won't include Jaxson Dart until next season after knee surgery and featured Winston as the starter, there was a sense of urgency to see how fast he could get up to speed.
The 23-year-old McCarthy started 10 games in two-plus seasons with the Vikings, winning six of them, while throwing 11 touchdowns with 12 interceptions. He brought a run element to the position in Minnesota, rushing for 181 yards with four touchdowns on 37 carries (4.9 yards per attempt) last season.
McCarthy must convince the locker room he can be an asset, and that he is willing to do whatever it takes to earn a role on this team. Harbaugh has built a roster that believes in meritocracy, at least to a point, so the initial impressions of him three games into the season - and without an entire offseason, training camp and preseason here - will set a tone for what's to come.
Giants cap on backwards, McCarthy was engaging and unassuming as he met with reporters for the first time post-trade. Just as with his coaches and teammates, the session was not an interrogation as much as it was a get-to-know you first day of school.
“Being in the league almost over two and a half years now, who you are is who you are,” McCarthy said. “I just try to be authentically me, because the locker room’s gonna find out eventually. So I just try to be myself and do whatever I can to just be a guy that lets them know that I love this game. I’m gonna work my butt off and love these guys around me.”
McCarthy embraced a new set of challenges. Can he alter his football fate and help the Giants this season?
McCarthy won a national championship at Michigan with Jim Harbaugh as his head coach. Now John Harbaugh takes his turn in seeing if McCarthy can rediscover that identity and prove his value beyond being the third-string QB he was set up to be this season with the Vikings behind Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz.
Winston has thrown seven touchdowns with five interceptions as the Giants' starter, going 2-1-1.
McCarthy’s 4.9 air yards per attempt and 17.2 air yards per completion were the most by a quarterback with at least 20 dropbacks in a game this season, according to NextGenStats.
“The thing that’s important to remember is we are most definitely a work in progress,” Harbaugh said. “It’s our responsibility to find ourselves and put together the type of football team that can go get what we want."
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Will J.J. McCarthy replace Jameis Winston as NY Giants starting QB?