It appears Viking fans aren't going to get "Brett Favre déjà vu" in 2025. There are new reports Wednesday morning that the Minnesota Vikings are moving to make last year's first round draft pick "quarterback one", and skip the Aaron Rodgers experience.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero is reporting that the Vikings have spurned a number of offers for them to trade last year's rookie QB J.J. McCarthy and will head into the season as their quarterback. The Athletic's Dianna Russini is reporting that the Vikings will continue to monitor the Rodgers situation however, but they're not willing to commit to him as their QB.
While the team is reportedly saying they will bring on board a veteran to back him up, Pellisero reports that it will not be former Packer and Jet QB Aaron Rodgers, who has been teasing the idea of coming to the Vikings.
Rodgers has seen some interest from both the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants, but national reports suggested that Rodgers was holding out on making a decision until he heard what the Vikings were planning, as that was his top choice to sign as a free agent.
This report, apparently, shoots down that possibility.
Purple Insider's Matthew Coller said the reports the Vikings were interested in Rodgers never really made sense - either financially or from a team chemistry standpoint. Aaron Rodgers is a four-time NFL MVP, Super Bowl champion and future first-ballot Hall of Famer but Coller thinks those days are behind him.
"He has only won 13 of his last 34 starts in the NFL since 2021, which makes you wonder if he would be as great as, you know, I think the few people that want him think that he would be," Coller told the WCCO Morning News with Vineeta Sawkar. "So, personally, I'm not for this idea of the Vikings going after Aaron Rodgers."
Coller adds there is a bit of a circus that comes to town with Rodgers, as the New York Jets found out the last two seasons, and that can be detrimental to the team. The Jets already have announced they’re releasing the 41-year-old quarterback after two disappointing seasons.
"Do they want to deal with the circus that comes along with Aaron Rodgers because he's not just a quarterback, but he's also a political figure as well," Coller adds. "You know, Netflix documentaries and all sorts of different things, and interviews on national shows where he says a lot of different things that have implications with your locker room."
Rodgers now may have to wait until after the draft to find a new team for 2025 - if he still wants to play. Rodgers hasn’t said he definitely plans to keep playing, though he recently said he’d like to go to a team that wants him and he wants to go to a team that has a chance to win, which the Vikings certainly do after a 14-win season with Sam Darnold under center.
Darnold is now in Seattle and most teams have their QB for 2025 all set, but there are still a few teams looking for a starter. Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders are expected to be the top two quarterbacks selected in the draft. The NFL Draft is coming up April 24-26.
Meanwhile, the Vikings look ready to turn the offense over to the unproven McCarthy. The former Michigan QB had impressed the Viking coaching staff enough in offseason workouts and limited time during the NFL preseason that they were still undecided between Darnold and McCarthy.
But once McCarthy's knee flared up - and required season ending surgery - it became Darnold's big chance to resurrect his career. The other QB the Vikings had on the 2024 roster was Nick Mullen, who has already signed a deal with Jacksonville. That leaves the Vikings with McCarthy and little-used Brett Rypien, who signed in Minnesota after three seasons as a backup in Denver.
Some of the veteran QB's still on the market to provide insurance beyond McCarthy are former Seattle, Denver and Pittsburgh QB Russell Wilson, former Bucanneer and Browns QB Jameis Winston, and Carson Wentz who most recently backed up Patrick Mahomes in KC and spent several seasons in Philadelphia.