JJ McCarthy injury: Giants QB is on track to face Commanders on 'Thursday Night Football'

McCarthy suffered a hip injury during Sunday's win over the Eagles but returned to play

Nov 9, 2026 at 12:25 pm ET • 1 min read

The New York Giants' first win in Philadelphia since 2013 included a gritty performance from quarterback JJ McCarthy, who temporarily left the game after taking a shot to the midsection early in the second half. McCarthy missed one series before returning to the game and helping the Giants record a 19-11 win over the Philadelphia Eagles. 

McCarthy's injury has been labeled as a hip pointer. On Monday, Giants coach John Harbaugh said that McCarthy is "doing well" and that it "does look like he's going to play" in Thursday night's home game against the Washington Commanders. 

The Giants are now 2-0 in games that McCarthy has started. On Sunday, McCarthy went 12 of 19 for 127 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. In his first start with New York, McCarthy went 20 of 28 for 252 yards with no touchdowns and no picks in an overtime win over the Houston Texans. 

New York's only touchdown on Sunday occurred during the series that McCarthy missed. Jameis Winston, who went 2-1-1 as the Giants' this season before he was replaced by McCarthy, gave New York the lead for good on a five-yard touchdown pass to tight end Isaiah Likely with 2:30 left in the third quarter. Winston went 6 of 8 for 71 yards on the Giants' 14-play, 76-yard drive that took nearly eight minutes off the clock. 

McCarthy returned on the Giants' ensuing possession and led a 13-play, 54-yard scoring drive that included two third-down conversions by McCarthy: an 11-yard completion to Malik Nabers on third-and-5 and an 11-yard run on third-and-10 that got New York in field goal range. 

With the win, the Giants maintained their sole possession of first place in the NFC East division. Thursday will mark nearly one month since the Giants and Commanders tied after Washington botched the final seconds of overtime.