“Don’t be surprised if, when he’s he goes in the 2024 NFL Draft, he’s the No. 1 quarterback off the board. That’s my prediction right now,” Jim Harbaugh touted with his chest overflowing with pride even when he has left his Michigan in Colin Cowherd’s show, ‘The Herd’. The National Championship win over the Washington Huskies with the team he forged from scratch would always be a memory from his former team that Jim Harbaugh would cherish. As Jim Harbaugh engrossed himself with the hiring and firing duties at the Chargers, one of the best players to play under Harbaugh, JJ McCarthy, also gears up for his switch to the NFL.

JJ McCarthy is one of the hottest players in the NFL trade market. Since he declared his choice to be in the 2024 NFL draft, franchises are putting the best of their officials to devise a plan to secure McCarthy, as the race behind him is nothing less than cutthroat. Per NFL Insider Destin Adams, the competition to secure McCarthy is “significantly higher than I ever could have imagined.” Several reports claim that McCarthy is easily projected as a first-round pick, given his performance in the 2023 season. To further substantiate these reports, Adams also revealed, “I had a direct source today share that a team in the NFC has him as their QB 2.” Since he announced his choice to enter the draft, several teams have approached him.

JJ McCarthy and the NFL teams

Per the reports released by Marca, JJ McCarthy has been contacted by two leading NFL franchises, the New York Giants and the Las Vegas Raiders. It is said that both of these teams have given positive discussions with the QB ahead of the draft, as their interest was piqued by McCarthy’s 1st round grade.

The Giants are selecting sixth overall on the first day of April, which puts them ‘out of range’ for other potential first-round players like Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, and Jayden Daniels. On the other hand, the Raiders are picking the 13th, as they show a promising future to rookie QB O’Connell by benching veteran player Jimmy Garoppolo. Hence, if they don’t see enough potential in O’Connell as well, their moving on to another explosive young rookie won’t come as a surprise.

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Because of the top-notch run game at Michigan, McCarthy was not usually required to throw the ball downfield. Yet, whenever he did, he did it flawlessly, flaunting his arm’s strength. His going 27-1 as a starter during his college career backs it up. While the presence of more flashy QBs like Caleb Williams and Drake Maye might overshadow McCarthy, teams know that he is a winner.

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