In 2024, J.J. McCarthy became the theorized solution for the Minnesota Vikings at quarterback. In 2025, the rubber hit the road for him to strut his stuff. In 2026, the pressure is on, so much so that McCarthy is on the hot seat, says CBS Sports.

It’s a prove-it season for McCarthy: stay healthy, win the job early, and stop leaving the door open.

Tyler Sullivan sized up all quarterbacks on the hot seat in 2026, and McCarthy checked in at No. 2 behind Shedeur Sanders of the Cleveland Browns.

Minnesota’s QB Room Has a Man on the Hot Seat

McCarthy has one big chance to prove it.

Sullivan: McCarthy Is on the Hot Seat

McCarthy was included on Sullivan’s “hot seat” list, grouped with passers like C.J. Stroud, Michael Penix Jr., and Bryce Young.

On McCarthy, he wrote, “The Vikings bungled their quarterback situation, and it may have cost them their Super Bowl window. They decided to ride with McCarthy and allow Sam Darnold to depart in free agency last offseason after a 14-3 regular season in 2024. Darnold went on to win a Super Bowl with Seattle, while McCarthy has largely struggled as the starter.”

“That decision was seemingly a driving force in Minnesota firing GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. A new GM won’t have the same investment in McCarthy as Adofo-Mensah did, so the former first-round pick is truly at a crossroads in 2026. In fact, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Vikings, under interim GM Rob Brzezinski, bring in some competition this offseason. Depending on who comes aboard (Mac Jones, Tua Tagovailoa, etc.), McCarthy’s job could vanish before we even get to Week 1.”

McCarthy will likely have to fight like hell this summer to keep his job, let alone worry about the 2026 regular season hot seat.

“In 2025, McCarthy was 6-4 as the starter, completed just 57.6% of his passes, and had more interceptions (12) than touchdowns (11). However, the Michigan product did flash a little bit down the stretch, owning a 4-0 record over his final four games in 2025 with seven total touchdowns and just three turnovers,” Sullivan added.

“Is that the tide turning in a positive direction? That remains to be seen, but the Vikings aren’t exactly acting like it is as they seem open to an upgrade if one is realistically available to them.”

A Competition This Time

In 2025, the Vikings ultimately took heat for “handing McCarthy the job.” The club’s QB2 was Brett Rypien until the draft, when Adofo-Mensah traded for Sam Howell, who was dropped four months later. The Vikings then signed Carson Wentz, and he wound up starting five games because of McCarthy’s injury woes.

Minnesota almost certainly won’t give McCarthy a cakewalk this offseason and summer. Head coach Kevin O’Connell, who some believe is the personnel general manager, will find another quarterback to push McCarthy to the limit or perhaps take his job on paper by the end of March.

Some logical candidates included Kyler Murray, Mac Jones, Malik Willis, Kirk Cousins, Aaron Rodgers, Derek Carr, Tua Tagovailoa, Anthony Richardson, and Will Levis.

The Sweet and Salty of J.J. McCarthy

McCarthy’s season presented a stark contrast between flashes of brilliance and frustrating injury setbacks, particularly during the middle of the year. After returning from a high ankle sprain, his performance became inconsistent, with productive theatrics emerging only late in games. This difficult three-game stretch culminated in a concussion against Green Bay, further contributing to the stop-and-start rhythm that ruined much of his season.

However, the first game of 2025 showcased McCarthy’s potential. He engineered a 4th Quarter comeback in Chicago and earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors in his first start. Later, he demonstrated resilience by returning from the ankle injury to secure a hard-fought road victory in Detroit, delivering one of his most impressive performances in a raucous environment.

Towards the end of the season, McCarthy displayed Pro Bowl-caliber play against Washington, Dallas, and New York before a hairline fracture in his hand sidelined him once more.

As Minnesota looks ahead to 2025, they have a quarterback capable of making exceptional throws and orchestrating late-game heroics. The primary concern remains his health.

A Grand Climax Awaits

Thankfully for eager fans’ sake, the wait is nearly over on the identity of McCarthy’s new quarterback teammate. NFL free agency kicks off in 13 days with “legal tampering.” Minnesota will either sign a free agent like Willis or trade for a passer like Murray or Jones. It could also sign a seasoned veteran like Jimmy Garoppolo to act as steady QB2 insurance.

Once the Vikings reveal that man, it will be easier to gauge McCarthy’s hot seat, the one described by Sullivan. Suppose the Vikings trade for Mac Jones. McCarthy’s seat will instantly become toasty. A Garoppolo signing or someone similar will take the hot-seat conversation all the way through the regular season.

On the whole, Sullivan is right. The 2026 summer, fall, and winter are McCarthy’s one big shot to prove he has QB1 staying power as a 23-year-old. If he does not, he’ll get in line with the Baker Mayfields and Sam Darnolds to prove himself at a later date well into his 20s.

The German national team’s sporting director, Rudi Völler, stressed in a  weekly sports talk show recently, that while no gag order would be imposed on anyone, “it cannot be that it’s being talked about, practically on a matchday like with this disaster in Qatar.”

Völler was referring to the One Love armband debate in Qatar, which Germany – and several other nations – dropped at the last minute after FIFA threatened sanctions. Germany then protested ahead of the Japan game by posing for the team photo with their mouths covered.

Germany were met with a lot of criticism for their gesture in Qatar, but Jürgen Mittag, a professor of sports politics at the German Sport University Cologne, believes had they made the quarterfinals things might have been different.

“But as it was, they were met with a great deal of ridicule because they were symbolically strong but sportingly weak,” Mittag told DW.

EU weakens Germany’s stance

The hope is that in the United States of America, Canada and Mexico Germany will perform better on the field, but what does that mean for their stance off it?

Michael Mutz, a professor of social sciences in sports at the Justus-Liebig University Giessen, doubts that any political statement will be made.

“I can’t imagine that the DFB (German Football Association) will actively pursue a political agenda against the host country again after the negative experiences in Qatar,” Mutz told DW. 

“The DFB is exposing itself to accusations of double standards because it criticized the situation in Qatar so harshly and will now presumably remain silent about the US, but the association will have to accept that.”

Mittag believes Germany’s postion is weakened by the current state of the European Union. The bloc is now further challenged by Donald Trump’s new round of tariffs on six member states as well as the UK and Norway who sent troops or officials to Greenland — which Trump is intent on acquiring — for security purposes.

“European democracy is also suffering a little… it is becoming increasingly fragmented and is therefore somewhat less capable of acting in foreign policy. This applies to the big picture as a whole, as well as to the internal sphere of football and other sports-related matters,” Mittag explained before the tariffs, set to start on February 1, were announced.

“Germany has been very proactive in sports diplomacy in recent years, but has also found that although it plays a prominent role, it doesn’t receive much support,” Mittag added.

Mittag cites the example of Germany’s stance on Russia and Belarus’s return to the Olympics. Germany petitioned hard against this and tried to forge a strong alliance, but only received minimal support. Mittag believes this defeat has hurt them, and forced them to reconsider their approach.

“That’s when Germany realized that it needs to pursue a different strategy. It doesn’t want to give up its position, but placing too much emphasis on moral, value-based issue is strategically clumsy. So, in the end, it does not lead to success and then you even have to put up with scorn or schadenfreude when you perform poorly in sporting terms,” Mittag explained.

Political shift in sports diplomacy

Andreas Rettig, an outspoken sports executive who used to work at St. Pauli, was appointed as the new DFB’s CEO in 2023 and may be the perfect person to forge new alliances and better position Germany in committees. Even he has come up against challenges though. Rettig’s attempt to initiate a dialogue on critical issues ahead of the 2024 Euros was not met with much enthusiasm by regional associations.

Others in Germany have been loud, though. St. Pauli President and DFB Vice President Oke Göttlich recently told Sportschau: “Personally, I would advise against traveling given the current situation in the country.”

After Bayern Munich’s Champions League win over Union Saint-Gilloise, Bayern and Germany captain Joshua Kimmich said he would “no longer be taking part in the political discussion.”

The DFB have yet to comment.

“There has been a realpolitik shift in sports diplomacy, it’s somewhat less value-based, somewhat more realistic and acting pragmatically in order to perhaps achieve more success than in the past,” Mittag added.

Viewership might drop

The January protests against the Trump administration’s clampdown on illegal immigration – including a decision by the US justice department not to launch a criminal civil rights investigation into the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis on January 7 – have increased tensions in many places.

Given that Germany’s viewership dipped for the World Cup in Qatar, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see another drop this summer, particularly given the difficult kickoff times for European viewers.

“I believe that we will not see the same viewing figures as in previous World Cups,” Mittag said.

“I would actually assume that broadcasting and media behavior will also reflect the fact that a lot of people in the summer of 2026 will say, ‘I’m aware of this World Cup, but I’m not going to watch it all. I’m not as enthusiastic as in previous years, and in a small way, I’m expressing my criticism.’”

 What is clear is that the moment Germany touch down in the United States, players and staff will have to answer questions about playing a tournament in the current political and social climate. The strength of their answers will depend on many factors, but perhaps most of all on how well they play on the field.

“The decisive factor for identification with the national team is not so much the political situation as the fact that the DFB team is perceived as a likeable, approachable, and successful team,” Mutz explained.

“Certainly, there is also a growing awareness in society that we are living in times of crisis and that political opinions are highly polarized. Especially in these times, the national football team could be an important anchor point for identification and the experience of belonging and community—across all social groups and political camps. However, football’s ability to bring different people together is weakened when the national team is perceived as too political.”

Edited by: Chuck Penfold

This article was updated on January 26, 2026 to include the statement from the St. Pauli President.

Garden Horizons is a tycoon simulator on Roblox in which you become a gardener and grow Plants of different rarity and types on your plots. To purchase seeds for them, you must reach Bill’s Seed Shop, available at the center of the map, and interact with Bill, who will show you the available stock. Moreover, this shop gets restocked every five minutes, which will help you obtain different Plant seeds.

This guide will introduce you to every Plant seed available in the game.

What are Plants in Garden Horizons?

Developed by Dawn Digital, Garden Horizons allows you to purchase seeds of different kinds and rarity by interacting with Bill at Bill’s Seed Shop. Located at the center of the map, this shop possesses a limited stock of multiple seeds that you can purchase by spending Shillings.

By sowing these seeds in your garden, you can grow them into mature plants that either possess or produce some harvestable byproducts over time. Upon selling the harvested produce to the Steve NPC, located beside the seed shop, you can earn Shillings based on the weight, mutation, and modifier it has.

Plant Modifiers

Depending on the ripening stage a fruit has been harvested, you can obtain one of these three value multipliers:

• Unripe: 1.0x to 1.9x increase in base value of the fruit.
• Ripened: 2.0 to 2.9x increase in base value of the fruit.
• Lush: 3.0x increase in base value of the fruit.

Plant Mutations

While growing, a fruit or Plant can obtain one of the following mutations, which can increase the base value of the produce:

• Soaked: 1.2x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Foggy: 1.2x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Chilled: 1.5x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Flooded: 1.5x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Silver: 2.0x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Snowy: 2.0x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Sandy: 2.5x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Mossy: 3.5x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Shocked: 4.5x increase in the base value of the fruit.
• Gold: 5.0x increase in base the value of the fruit.
• Starstruck: 6.5x increase in the base value of the fruit.

Also read: All Gear in Garden Horizons

All Plant seeds in Garden Horizons

Here’s a list of all the Plant seeds that are obtainable in this tycoon simulator:

• Carrot Seed (Common): Can be bought for $20.
• Corn Seed (Common): Can be bought for $100.
• Dandelion Seed (Common): Obtained from Gardener Seed Pack.
• Sunpetal Seed (Common): Obtained from Gardener Seed Pack.
• Bellpepper Seed (Uncommon): Obtained from Gardener Seed Pack.
• Onion Seed (Uncommon): Can be bought for $200.
• Strawberry Seed (Uncommon): Can be bought for $800.
• Mushroom Seed (Uncommon): Can be bought for $1500.
• Goldenberry Seed (Uncommon): Obtained from Dawn Seed Pack.
• Beetroot Seed (Rare): Can be bought for $2500.
• Birch Seed (Rare): Obtained from Gardener Seed Pack.
• Tomato Seed (Rare): Can be bought for $4,000.
• Apple Seed (Rare): Can be bought for $7,000.
• Amber Pine (Rare): Obtained from Dawn Seed Pack.
• Rose Seed (Rare): Can be bought for $10,000.
• Wheat Seed (Epic): Can be bought for $12k.
• Banana Seed (Epic): Can be bought for $30k.
• Plum Seed (Epic): Can be bought for $60k.
• Potato Seed (Epic): Can be bought for $100k.
• Orange Seed (Epic): Obtained from Dawn Seed Pack.
• Cabbage Seed (Legendary): Can be bought for $150k.
• Cherry Seed (Legendary): Can be bought for $1M.
• Dawnfruit Seed (Legendary): Obtained from Dawn Seed Pack.
• Olive Seed (Legendary): Obtained from Premium Gardener Seed Pack.

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FAQs on Plants in Garden Horizons

Where can I buy Plant seeds in Garden Horizons?

You can purchase seeds from Bill’s Seed Shop, located at the center of the map. Interact with Bill to check the available stock.

How often does Bill’s Seed Shop restock in Garden Horizons?

The shop restocks every five minutes, meaning new seeds can appear regularly. If you’re hunting for rare or high-value seeds, keep checking back.

Can all Plants get Mutations?

Yes, any growing Plant has a chance to receive a mutation. However, the mutation type depends on in-game weather or environmental conditions.