Minnesota Vikings players have used Super Bowl week to vent about the team’s QB, especially after Sam Darnold took the field for the Seattle Seahawks in the big game; questions about him and the team’s decision to let him walk last offseason are coming in hot.
The question this offseason will be whether the Vikings decide to keep J.J. McCarthy as their starter, given that the team is built to win now. Moreover, with Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s firing, Kevin O’Connell is likely under pressure to deliver a playoff berth in 2026.
As a result, could O’Connell afford to roll the dice on McCarthy again or look for a QB that can either challenge him for the job or replace him in the short term?
During a Feb. 5 appearance on “Nightcap,” Aaron Jones Sr. gave his take on where he thinks Aaron Rodgers should play next season, if he decides to play a 22nd season in the NFL.
“I like him in Minnesota,” Jones said. “That’s my dog. I’m just throwing that out there. And then just what he brings to a locker room — that leadership, it’s a standard. If you ain’t in your playbook, you ain’t seeing the field. He’s going to test you.
“He’s going to throw some signals out there, and he’s going to see if you really care about this. And as a player, I love that because I’m in my books. I’m making an effort. I came from UTEP from nothing, so I had to earn that. And when you do it the right way and it’s noticed, it’s refreshing.”
Justin Jefferson Talks Aaron Rodgers Speculation
Despite being in his 40s, Rodgers showed that he can still play at a high level. He posted a passer rating of 94.8 with 3,322 passing yards, 24 passing touchdowns, and seven interceptions in 16 regular-season games for the Pittsburgh Steelers, per StatMuse.
Furthermore, Jones wasn’t the only Vikings player who was asked about Rodgers playing for Minnesota next season. During a Feb. 5 appearance on Mad Dog Sports Radio, Justin Jefferson answered whether he would want to play with the former Green Bay Packers QB.
“I don’t really know,” Jefferson said. “Honestly, I don’t really know. And really, my mindset is that all I can do is work with what I already have and what’s in the pudding already. And that is J.J. being my quarterback.”
Jefferson also sounded committed to helping McCarthy improve this offseason to ensure the Vikings return to the playoffs next season.
“Until something changes or until I hear the word that somebody else is coming in, it’s my job, and I feel like it’s my need to get J.J. to where we need to go, which is working out with each other, building that relationship, building that connection to get better and to not let this past season happen again, because we feel like there’s different times where we could have won that game or could have had a better stretch than what we had,” Jefferson added.
Should the Vikings Pursue Aaron Rodgers?
Meanwhile, CBS Sports’ Leger Douzable believes the Vikings should roll the dice on Rodgers as their QB next season.
“I have a name that’s probably going to shock a lot of people, but I think it makes a lot of sense: Aaron Rodgers,” Douzable said during a Feb. 3 appearance on CBS Sports HQ. “There were rumors last year going into the 2025 season that this is where he wanted to be. But the front office and the coaching staff decided they were going to go with J.J. McCarthy because they put that draft capital in for him, and it hadn’t really worked out this past year.
“We’ve heard Justin Jefferson come out and say he’s in support of J.J. McCarthy, but you could tell he’s also frustrated as well, and you can see it in the game tape as well. Why not take a flyer on Aaron Rodgers and talk him out of retirement for one more year? When you look at this roster, it’s one of the best rosters in football. The one thing they’re missing is the quarterback position.”
Aaron Jones Sr. Gets Blunt on Vikings, Aaron Rodgers Speculation