Vikings Myths and Misses: The Big Trade, McCarthy Bench Talk, Aaron Rodgers
The Minnesota Vikings nopedy nope section at VikingsTerritory is busy this week, focusing on trades, benching theories, and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback.
For Vikings nopedy nopes this week, we examine the T.J. Hockenson trade, the idea of benching J.J. McCarthy, and Aaron Rodgers.
Our myths and misses — nopedy nopes — following Vikings-themed items from the week that are wrong, misleading, outlandish, or merely didn’t work out.
Here’s this week’s batch.
Vikings Nopedy Nopes | September 28th, 2025
The non-starter topics in Minnesota’s orbit this week.
The Nopedy Nope: According to ESPN, the Vikings only “slightly” won the T.J. Hockenson trade from 2022.
This week, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell assessed every NFL trade from 2022 and 2023 with the benefit of hindsight, including the Vikings’ 2022 deal for T.J. Hockenson with the Detroit Lions.
Barnwell opined, “At the time: This was a calculated bet from the Vikings, who were adding a second option behind Justin Jefferson at a TE position where the top salaries lagged behind their counterparts at wide receiver. Hockenson was in the middle of a career year with the Lions, and there was hope that the 2019 eighth pick might hit new heights after leaving a frustrating situation in Detroit.”
“A Lions team that had started 4-19-1 under Dan Campbell didn’t seem close to contending. What happened: The Lions have been one of the best teams in the NFL since that move, and they ably replaced Hockenson with second-round pick Sam LaPorta, although the picks they got as part of this deal didn’t pan out into regular contributors. Would the Lions have traded Hockenson if they knew they were about to get white-hot in the second half of 2022 and become one of the best teams in the league in 2023?”
Hockenson remains Minnesota’s TE1 and has held the job for four seasons.
“Hockenson posted career-high receiving totals in 2022 and then again in 2023, but those were more a product of running more routes than becoming more efficient. The two-time Pro Bowler had his 2023 season sidelined by a torn ACL and hasn’t looked quite as explosive since returning halfway through the 2024 campaign,” Barnwell continued.
“Even with that being true, the Vikings did get meaningful production out of him in 2022 and 2023, and there’s a lot of time in 2025 for Hockenson to turn things around. Verdict: Slight win for the Vikings.”
This one is wild. Claiming Minnesota only “slightly” won the trade is lunacy. From the deal, the Lions came away with Hendon Hooker and Brodric Martion — two players on other teams’ practice squads in 2025.
Per personnel in the fallout of the trade, the Vikings won by a mile.
The Verdict: Nopedy nope on a “slight win” by the Vikings in the Hockenson trade. It was a landslide win.
The Nopedy Nope: J.J. McCarthy could be benched by Kevin O’Connell after a single bad game in Week 2.
The well-respected Albert Breer of SI.com was asked recently on a podcast if McCarthy would be reinstated into the starting lineup before too long.
Breer said: “I think he does. I just think he does. But I think this is a team that, with such a high ceiling, at the other 21 positions, that you have to give that team every chance you can to compete for a championship. This isn’t a team that’s built where you say you can throw the season overboard in the name of quarterback development.
“If you think, ‘We’re gonna be the 7 seed instead of the 2 seed because our young quarterback is gonna go through a lot of developmental things over the course of the year, and we think this other guy over here will help us avoid those sorts of bumps.’ Then yeah, you have to consider it.”
Unless McCarthy is just a damn fool behind the scenes — he’s not — Minnesota won’t deviate from the plan of his development.
The Verdict: Nopedy nope on benching McCarthy after a single bad game in Week 2.
The Nopedy Nope: The Aaron Rodgers sweepstakes, in general.
All things Vikings, per fans’ attention, center on Aaron Rodgers in March and April. The man allegedly wanted to join Kevin O’Connell’s team for a one-year run at the Super Bowl.
According to Rodgers, though, that wasn’t entirely true.
Rodgers’ Steelers play the Vikings on Sunday in Dublin, and before that contest, a reporter asked him about the realism of the offseason rumor.
Rodgers stated that he and O’Connell have been friends for a long time and explained, “Kevin and I have been friends since 2008. We used to work out together at a little place called Fitness Quest 10 out in North County San Diego.”
“So, I’ve known him forever. We’ve been friends forever, and we keep in touch. He’s one of the guys I keep in touch with. Things never progressed farther than catch up conversations. I’ll just leave it at that.”
If one believes Rodgers, the entire rumor about him turning purple was totally overblown.
The Verdict: Rodgers says nopedy nope about wanting to play for the Vikings in 2025.
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