J.J. McCarthy is set to make his first start for the New York Giants in Sunday's game against the Houston Texans, head coach John Harbaugh announced this week. This came after McCarthy relieved Jameis Winston in Week 6's loss to the New Orleans Saints and threw for 243 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter, and led three scoring drives.
The Giants traded for McCarthy last month in the wake of Jaxson Dart's season-ending injury. Unprovoked, this week in his assessment of this development in his quarterback room, Harbaugh likened the situation to former seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady hypothetically returning to the field.
Harbaugh used Brady in his analogy to describe McCarthy's need to learn the offense over the last few weeks before he was inserted into the lineup. Even one of the smartest signal callers in NFL history would need time to acclimate to a new scheme, he said.
"If Tom Brady decided he wanted to come back from retirement and actually could, which I doubt for one second he could, no matter what he thinks, you heard me, Tom — I don't think he'd be ready the first week," Harbaugh said Friday. "As much as you might want to put him in there, it wouldn't be in the best interest to play him the first week. There's a lot of things going on there."
To Harbaugh's point, McCarthy is adjusting to a new scheme after playing in 10 games last season with the Minnesota Vikings. McCarthy completed 140 of 243 passes for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 2025, his first season after missing the entirety of his rookie year due to injury.
The acclimation period takes time, according to Harbaugh, whose team expanded its playbook to 90 percent for McCarthy before last week's loss to the Saints. Operationally, the offense will adjust to McCarthy's strengths and his ability to move outside of the pocket.
"We fully feel as a staff, [Giants quarterbacks] coach [Brian] Callahan has done an amazing job working with him and getting him ready. We feel confident about it," Giants offensive coordinator Matt Nagy told reporters. "And now for us, it's a matter of doing what he does well and what we do well to put it all together."
Nagy said his offensive staff wants to keep play calls manageable for McCarthy in his first start.
Brady has no plans to return to the NFL as a player, but he did say during the spring he has asked about the league's policy on minority owners suiting up. Brady has an ownership stake in the Las Vegas Raiders and helped the franchise make advisory decisions this offseason.
"I actually have inquired, and they don't like that idea very much," Brady said. "We explored a lot of different things, and I'm very happily retired. Let me just say that, too."
