The switch from Jameis Winston to McCarthy comes after the third-year quarterback has been with the team for four weeks

Oct 24, 2026 at 6:18 pm ET • 2 min read

New York Giants coach John Harbaugh saw more than enough from J.J. McCarthy during the fourth quarter of last week's loss to give him the starting nod in Sunday's matchup with the Houston Texans.

After coming off the bench to replace Jameis Winston and lead three scoring drives in the final 10 minutes, the leash is coming off McCarthy for a team in dire need of consistent quarterback play with Jaxson Dart on the shelf for the rest of the campaign.

With New York's bye week on the way after Sunday's game, it would be quite a surge of momentum to beat the Texans. The Giants would also pick up some confidence before the start of November, potentially 4-2-1 and atop the NFC East.

"What gives us the best chance to be our best? Gives us the best chance to play the best offense we can, and I thought Jameis has done a tremendous job," Harbaugh said this week on his decision. "Won us games, played well. But as we go forward here, this is going to be our direction, and we think it gives us some good options on offense."

Harbaugh said the move to McCarthy after a month is due in part to giving the franchise's freshest quarterback time in a different system following a trade with the Minnesota Vikings. Harbaugh joked that not even Tom Brady would be able to start immediately for a new team if he came out of retirement ready to go, given the complexities of learning a different playbook.

Winston threw for 957 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions in five games after the injury to Dart, going 2-2-1 overall.

"Both guys are great quarterbacks. It's not really a comparison kind of thing," Harbaugh said. "Just, you know, J.J.'s got a skill set that we can take advantage of, and we're excited to see what we can do with it. He's obviously out here throwing right now. I'm kind of watching him as you guys ask the questions out here, getting some extra work. 

"He's got a heck of a skill set, you know? He can throw it. He's picked up the offense really quickly. He's an athletic guy, obviously, and he's going to play some good football."

Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy and quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan have spent the last few weeks with McCarthy, assuring Harbaugh that the third-year pro is ready to operate at full efficiency.

"The offense is — the book itself is huge, and it's always tailored toward probably your players, and certainly your quarterback, right? But he's got the game plan down," Harbaugh said. "I think he headed down last week, pretty fully, even more so this week. It has been tailored a little more toward his direction, probably, but he'll be ready to go."

McCarthy, a former first-round pick, told reporters this week he was "honored" to be named New York's Week 7 QB1.

"You know, thrilled to get out there, and tomorrow really get in the film room and just evaluate today's practice and get better, and go from there," McCarthy said.