J.J. McCarthy Box Score Stats, Highlights After Jameis Winston Benched in Giants vs. Saints

With Jameis Winston struggling against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, the New York Giants turned to their backup quarterback.

J.J. McCarthy, whom the Giants acquired from the Minnesota Vikings earlier this month, came in for New York in the fourth quarter after Winston threw a pair of interceptions through the first three quarters.

McCarthy put together a solid day and nearly led the Giants to a comeback win.

C/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	INT
11/21	243	11.6	1	1

McCarthy's first drive in a Giants' uniform didn't end well, as he threw an interception.

McCarthy turned things around after the interception, though, leading New York to back-to-back touchdown drives, plus a field goal to bring the Giants within a touchdown in the final minutes.

The Giants ultimately came up just short, but it was a promising debut for McCarthy.

Winston had put together a disappointing performance against his former team before coming out, throwing for 152 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions on 14-of-26 passing.

Last week, Winston had his best showing of the season when he recorded 326 yards and three touchdowns against the Washington Commanders. Clearly, he didn't carry his momentum into Week 6.

McCarthy, the 10th overall pick in 2024, is looking for a fresh start in New York after a rough start to his career. After missing all of his rookie year, he had 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 10 games last year.

After losing the quarterback battle to Kyler Murray in Minnesota, McCarthy was demoted to the third-string position. The move to the Giants gave him the chance for a higher position on the depth chart, and New York gave him his first opportunity just a few weeks after he was traded.

The question now is whether McCarthy or Winston will get the nod next week against the Houston Texans. The Giants are still technically alive in the playoff race, but few are expecting them to make a run without star quarterback Jaxson Dart.

Winston is the veteran of the group, but after the way McCarthy finished Sunday's game, it'd be hard not to put him under center next week.