Giants Name J.J. McCarthy Starting Quarterback for Week 7 Game Against the Texans
New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh announced on October 21 that J.J. McCarthy will start at quarterback, replacing Jameis Winston, for the Week 7 game against the Houston Texans.
Winston had taken over after Jaxson Dart suffered a season-ending knee injury in a Week 2 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The 12th-year veteran went 2-0-1 in his first three starts as the Giants seized the NFC East lead. But against the New Orleans Saints on October 18, Winston threw two interceptions and was pulled early in the fourth quarter with New York trailing by 24 points, in a game the Giants lost 34-27. McCarthy led three scoring drives to bring New York within striking distance, though his fourth-down throw to the end zone fell incomplete to end the rally; he finished 11-of-21 passing for 243 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Harbaugh told reporters McCarthy has the game plan down and that the plan is to keep him as the starter for the rest of the season rather than evaluate the setup weekly, while praising Winston, saying he has done a tremendous job and won games for the team. McCarthy, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, was acquired by the Giants on September 28 in the aftermath of Dart's injury; with the Minnesota Vikings he had been demoted to third string after losing the starting quarterback competition to Kyler Murray over the summer. McCarthy said Wednesday that everything about the place feels very fitting for him. Houston's defense, which allowed the fewest yards per game in the NFL last season, struggled early this season, and head coach DeMeco Ryans has taken back play-calling responsibilities from defensive coordinator Matt Burke.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：四分卫 J.J. McCarthy 本人照，摄于2023年12月3日十大联盟（Big Ten）冠军赛后，当时效力于密歇根大学队（大学时期照片）。图片来源：Maize & Blue Nation／Wikimedia Commons。
