Right now, Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson are the biggest names still looking for a new home. Wilson’s out here hoping for a deal, while Rodgers? He’s sitting pretty with not just one or two, but three teams lining up for him. A-Rod currently has offers from the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants on the table. And if you’re thinking that he’d choose any of these two teams—think again.

You see, besides the Steelers and the Giants, Rodgers is in talks with Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings for a potential deal in 2025. Wild, but that’s true. According to ESPN’s NFL Insider Dan Graziano, the Vikings are “considering” signing Rodgers. The kicker? Well, Graziano reported that if O’Connell and Co. sign Rodgers, he would “obviously start ahead” of J.J. McCarthy. Not the kind of news McCarthy wants to hear.

The Vikings picked McCarthy 10th overall in the 2024 NFL draft. However, following a knee injury even before the regular season kicked off, McCarthy had to miss out on his rookie season. That said, the 22-year-old QB is now waiting for a fair opportunity to start in 2025. At one point, it looked like McCarthy is all set to start his era in Minnesota considering Sam Darnold is off to Seattle. Enter Aaron Rodgers… and boom, chaos.

But let’s be real—it’s not that Rodgers is certain to be the QB1 for the Vikings. See, Kevin O’Connell has a track record of finding the right quarterbacks, most notably signing Darnold in 2024 who had a career-reviving season last year. That means the Vikings’ front office and general manager, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, would let O’Connell decide the best fit for their QB room.

According to The Athletic‘s Mike Silver, the Vikings’ staff has assessed the 41-year-old veteran as a QB who, “remains a highly skilled passer who can still perform at a high level from the pocket, given the right supporting cast.” Well, don’t think of it as good news for the head coach and the Vikings. Because right now, O’Connell is stuck—does he roll with Rodgers or go with McCarthy as QB1 for 2025?

According to Silver, the Vikings trust O’Connell “to know and understand what” McCarthy, who is in his sophomore year and yet to make his debut in the pros, would think of the team signing Rodgers. Guess the head coach who is well known to sign the best QBs for the team is probably having nightmares about this QB dilemma.

See, O’Connell has a couple of options to choose in 2025. Either he signs the 41-year-old Rodgers who’s coming after recording 3,897 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 2024, or he could g0 ahead with McCarthy considering he’s young and a long-term option for the team. But one thing seems certain: if the Vikings sign Rodgers, it’s likely that he’d be the QB1 over McCarthy.

That means, the 22-year-old QB would have to wait for another year to start his era in Minnesota, considering this season is expected to be one last ride for Rodgers. Unless, of course, McCarthy’s injury decides to make an unexpected comeback and causes even more trouble.

J.J. McCarthy and his never-ending injury concerns

When the Vikings picked J.J. McCarthy 10th overall in the 2024 NFL draft, no doubt they got the franchise QB vibes. But nope, during his preseason, the guy fully torn his meniscus in his right knee, underwent surgery, and became the first QB picked in the first round to miss the whole rookie season. A start he never saw coming in the NFL.

Fast forward to now, after Sam Darnold left Minnesota for the Seahawks, it was pretty certain that McCarthy would be the QB1 in 2025. But looks like the Vikings are not pretty confident in McCarthy’s recovery ahead of the 2025 campaign—at least that’s what The Athletic‘s Dianna Russini reported. “At the Super Bowl, they (Vikings) said he was ahead of schedule. Then at the Combine? Not so much,” Russini reported.

To make things even worse for McCarthy, Dr. Jeff Mueller also stated that the QB’s cartilage isn’t responding well. “McCarthy has just under six months until Week 1. He has progressed to throwing, so we know the repair took. There’s a possibility his cartilage isn’t responding well,” he said. Terrible news for McCarthy. And for the Vikings?

Well, in the time being, it looks like they are desperate for a veteran QB if McCarthy isn’t recovered by September. That’s where Kevin O’Connell has to make arguably the toughest call in his HC tenure with the Vikings. Signing Aaron Rodgers could be an option for the Vikings given he’s probably playing his last season. Sure, nobody wants to see A-Rod in Minnesota, but that’s the thing about desperation—it pushes teams to make some wild decisions.