The Minnesota Vikings made their quarterback decision months ago, but the NFL world — and potentially Aaron Rodgers? — apparently hasn’t gotten the hint.
Insider Jeremy Fowler of ESPN updated Rodgers’ situation this week on the Dan Patrick Show, and he revealed that executives around the league continue to wonder if the future Hall of Famer is still waiting out the Vikings, as a long and highly awkward waiting game between Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers continues to play out.
“I don’t think they’ve changed their plan,” Fowler told Patrick of the Steelers. “They’re waiting on him. They know he’s had some stuff in his inner circle, or some family stuff, that he has been dealing with, which he alluded to on the Pat McAfee Show a few months ago. So, they’re sensitive to all that, and they’re just going to roll with Mason Rudolph until then.”
But in checking with the Vikings, I still don’t expect that. They’re moving forward with J.J. McCarthy. So, he really has no other option other than Pittsburgh or retirement.
— ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler on Aaron Rodgers
The idea of “rolling with Mason Rudolph” as a Plan B can’t sit right with Steelers fans, especially after the team passed on high-end quarterback prospects like Jaxson Dart, Tyler Shough and Shedeur Sanders in April’s draft.
So why has Pittsburgh allowed this situation to continue up to (and potentially past) OTAs? Fowler offered some potential insight pertaining to the Vikings and young quarterback J.J. McCarthy:
“There’s some teams I’ve talked to, they’re still kind of wondering, like, “is he just waiting out the Vikings?” Fowler said of Rodgers. “You know, because the Vikings would be an ideal scenario, one of the best play callers in the league in Kevin O’Connell, nine dome games (you’re guaranteed nine dome games per year), there’s some element of that.
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“But in checking with the Vikings, I still don’t expect that. They’re moving forward with J.J. McCarthy. So, he really has no other option other than Pittsburgh or retirement.”
No surprises here. The Vikings have their franchise quarterback, and barring some type of freak injury, Rodgers won’t be on Minnesota’s radar in 2025. The reported reaction from NFL execs, however, paints a sad picture of a former MVP who no longer has the sway and power to dictate his NFL future.
If Rodgers is really still waiting on Minnesota, that waiting game will most likely carry him into retirement.
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