John McCarthy (American football)

John Patrick McCarthy was a professional football player in the National Football League. He played in the league for just one season in 1944. McCarthy played for "Card-Pitt", a team that was the result of a temporary merger between the Chicago Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The teams merger was result of the manning shortages experienced league-wide due to World War II.

McCarthy was brought in as the team's quarterback after starter Coley McDonough was drafted into the United States Army just six days prior to the team's second game. During a game against the Green Bay Packers, McCarthy's 35 yard-per-punt average emboldened Card-Pitt to release Johnny Martin.

At the end of the season, the Card-Pitt passers completed just 31 percent of their attempts, with eight touchdowns and 41 interceptions (a record at the time, and still the third highest total in NFL history). McCarthy threw 13 of those interceptions, and didn’t throw a single touchdown pass. His quarterback rating was an astounding 3.0.