The Minnesota Vikings did, in fact, entertain Aaron Rodgers as a quarterback possibility for 2025.
Vikings GM Clears Air about Aaron Rodgers Saga
Ultimately, the club preferred 22-year-old J.J. McCarthy, a young passer now in line to assume a QB1 role for the team that drafted him 11 months ago.
Here’s what Adofo-Mensah said about his quarterback situation on Wednesday at a pre-draft press conference.
Rodgers Was an Option but McCarthy Is on Track as QB1
Reporters relentlessly questioned Adofo-Mensah about Rodgers before he all but ruled out the relationship. “We didn’t think it was the right move at this time. It is also his decision whether he signs with another team. That’s ultimately up to the player. For me to sit here and say that, you know, anything’s 100% forever, that’s just not the job,” Adofo-Mensah explained.
“We’re responding to scenarios and different information as it comes. So, you know, obviously things can change, but right now we’re really happy with our room.”
The “room” features McCarthy and Brett Rypien.
The door will remain ajar for Rodgers to the Vikings if something happens injury-wise to McCarthy — assuming Rodgers stays on the open market — but for now, it’s McCarthy’s job, not Rodgers’.
The O’Connell + Rodgers Connection
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell knows Rodgers quite well — they’re in the same age range, and both played quarterback — so O’Connell has “had a lot of conversations” this offseason.
O’Connell led the charge of speaking with Rodgers, according to Adofo-Mensah. “You’re talking about a player that Kevin’s known for a long time. When you have a relationship like that, I’m, you know, I’m typically the type that’s like, ‘Hey, whoever’s got the best relationship, talk to him,'” Adofo-Mensah said.
“He’s got a lot of respect in that community, and he deserves it for a lot of great reasons. Not just for the, you know, what he brings from a schematic standpoint but just how he cares about players, how he cares about people. He cares about you know a lot of times the environments around quarterbacks aren’t really supportive to quarterbacks.”
The Pittsburgh Steelers are the frontrunner to sign Rodgers, but that remains a waiting game. Rodgers enjoys soaking in the spotlight.
“For that reason, he’s got a great relationship with a lot of these guys, and he’s got a great relationship with Aaron,” Adofo-Mensah added about O’Connell and Rodgers’ friendship.
Go Time for McCarthy
Minnesota will now turn to McCarthy this season.
“When we pool the resources we did to draft J.J., and you go through that long process and all those things, I can’t stand up here and say that’s not the outcome we want. That’s the outcome we’re headed towards,” Adofo-Mensah mentioned about his young signal-caller.
“At every checkpoint, whether it been the draft process or practice, until the injury, and really the offseason now, he’s met the bar. I mean, he’s exceeded our expectations at every point.”
It was the worst-kept secret after the Rodgers rumor mill died, and Adofo-Mensah confirmed McCarthy’s path to QB1.
A QB2 … in Time
Minnesota will eventually nab a QB2 for McCarthy if it decides that Brett Rypien isn’t up for the task, but it will be mindful of its compensatory draft pick situation.
“We’re trying to improve the team but are mindful of our compensatory pick situation and different things like that. We’re really just trying to be mindful of that, and the right way to, you know, set us up to succeed, but also be mindful of all the different factors we have,” Adofo-Mensah elaborated on Wednesday.
A QB2 may not be found until after the draft.
Longtime Viking Says Goodbye
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His MIN obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.