Giants GM Joe Schoen says team has 'one of the stronger' quarterback depth charts after J.J. McCarthy trade

In his first start with the New York Giants, quarterback J.J. McCarthy looked like a new man. McCarthy, who quickly fell out of favor with the Minnesota Vikings, turned in another impressive performance with the Giants in Week 7, leading the team to a 27-21 win over the Houston Texans.

McCarthy didn’t throw for any touchdowns in the victory, though still managed to put up one of the most impressive quarterback performances of the week, one that featured some big-time throws.

Because of that, Giants general manager Joe Schoen is feeling pretty good about the team’s future at the position. Schoen went so far as to say the Giants have “one of the stronger [quarterback rooms] in the league.”

Schoen spent most of his answer praising veteran Jameis Winston, who led the team to a solid 2-1-1 record in four starts this season.

After singing Winston’s praises, Schoen called both Dart and McCarthy “talented players,” adding, “It’s a good position to be in.”

While Schoen spoke highly of both Dart and McCarthy, he talked his way around the original question, which was about the team’s future at quarterback. Following McCarthy’s strong performance in Week 7, the Giants could be looking at a possible quarterback controversy once Dart returns. McCarthy would still need to prove himself over multiple games before that becomes a realistic argument, but he should have plenty of chances to prove himself now that he’s taken over the starting job while Dart recovers from a knee injury.

If McCarthy can live up his pedigree as the No. 10 overall pick, that could create some drama once Dart is ready to play. That isn’t expected until next season, giving McCarthy a pretty lengthy audition for the starting job.

Even in that scenario, the Giants would ultimately benefit. The team could either look to trade Dart or McCarthy in the offseason if they want to avoid a position battle in training camp or hold both players and let the best man take the job. While Dart and McCarthy are still unproven in the NFL, both have shown moments of promise, and would likely draw trade interest if made available. If a deal doesn’t materialize, there are few downsides to have two strong quarterbacks on your roster.

All of that is, of course, dependent on McCarthy continuing to perform well. That’s far from a guarantee just a game-and-a-half into his Giants tenure, but Schoen has reasons to be encouraged about the team’s future at the position based on what the Vikings’ castoff has shown so far.