Say Goodbye to an Annoying Vikings Offseason Talker
Few things have ever reached that level of disturbance, but it’s now finally off the table. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers will suit up for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the upcoming 2025 campaign, pretty much every NFL reporter confirmed Thursday afternoon.
Say Goodbye to an Annoying Vikings Offseason Talker
NFL Network‘s Tom Pelissero laid the groundwork: “Renegade A-Rod: Four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers informed the Steelers he’ll fly to Pittsburgh on Friday and sign before next week’s minicamp, sources tell The Insiders. Finally, a done deal: Rodgers, 41, will play his 21st NFL season in black and gold.”
Most had Rodgers penciled in as Pittsburgh’s QB for weeks, but you can never be sure when it comes to the future Hall of Famer and his future in the league. He’s pretty much been an annual hot topic in the league’s offseason for more than half a decade.
This year, the Vikings were caught in the crossfire. Sam Darnold said goodbye, and Daniel Jones said goodbye, so folks move on to other candidates. The club needed another QB next to J.J. McCarthy, either as a starter or backup.
However, the franchise ultimately wanted to stick with the 2024 tenth-overall pick rather than benching him for the eccentric 41-year-old. Even when credible reporters squashed any of those talkers, others kept the rumor alive and didn’t talk about anything else for weeks.
The Rodgers to Minnesota connection slowly died in early April, and all decision-makers talked and acted as if it were McCarthy’s team. Fans of the theory in the reporting business left the door open, suggesting Rodgers would still be an option going into the summer if McCarthy got hurt again or struggled on the field.
He hasn’t done either.
Rodgers’ decision brings three fun schedule items. In Week 1, the Steelers will play at the New York Jets. Rodgers has described his unpleasant divorce from the Jets when he revealed details from his meeting with new head coach Aaron Glenn. His first contest with the Steelers is a revenge game.
A few weeks later, in Week 4, the Steelers will travel overseas to face the Minnesota Vikings. Just last year, Kevin O’Connell’s operation defeated the Rodgers-led Jets in London; this time, it’ll take place in Dublin. In the following days, the dysfunctional Jets cleaned house and fired head coach Robert Saleh and GM Joe Douglas. The Steelers are not known for irrational decisions based on short-term success or lack thereof.
And finally, the Steelers will face the Green Bay Packers, a franchise that was relevant primarily because of Rodgers for the better part of the 2010s. It will be his first game at Lambeau Field since leaving the Packers in the 2023 offseason.
Let’s check what folks in the Steelers media world say about the move.
Mike DeFabo (The Athletic) wrote: “Yes, Rodgers is a different quarterback. But the Steelers have been here before, relying on an aging, past-his-prime veteran and expecting the NFL’s highest-paid defense to prop him up. They tried that model last season with a 36-year-old Russell Wilson, and before that with a late-30s Ben Roethlisberger. In both instances, the results were a mix of flashes and fool’s gold.”
Pittsburgh’s QB carousel has been alarming this decade. They went from a washed Roethlisberger to Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, Justin Fields, and Russell Wilson. The results are always between nine and ten wins with a first-round playoff exit.
DeFabo concluded: “The most optimistic way to view this situation is that Rodgers improved at the end of the 2024 season, when he was further removed from his 2023 Achilles tear and nagging 2024 injuries. The hope would be that in a more stable environment, with the NFL’s highest-paid defense, a remade offensive line and a commitment to running the ball, Rodgers will be more effective than he was in New York.”
Rodgers was still fantastic in 2021 when he added a fourth MVP to his trophy case. In the following 2022 campaign, he didn’t look like himself and produced an average season by NFL standards. The move to the Jets started with a torn Achilles and ended with a terrible 2024 campaign. Rodgers, once again, had an average season.
At age 41, it might be time to accept that it’s just who he is by now. Tom Brady’s chapter in Tampa Bay remains a rare exception to the common aging process. In his prime, Rodgers was one of the best players to ever play the sport, and the Vikings had some hard-fought battles with him.
Rodgers will meet the Vikings, potentially for the final time, on September 28.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.
Departed Viking Struck Gold in Free Agency