Aaron Rodgers is somewhere right now, possibly completely off the grid with no internet, deciding whether he wants to play football in 2026.
Although he hasn’t decided one way or another, free agency is about to begin in two weeks, and like it or not, he might not have the same luxury he had last year of picking the Pittsburgh Steelers at the final moment.
This time around, the Steelers, along with other QB-hungry teams, might be making their claims quick with the shallow field of this year’s signal-caller class in the NFL Draft.
The Las Vegas Raiders seem assured to pick Fernando Mendoza first overall, and then there might not be another QB taken in the first round. And if they are, most pundits would agree that starting them in the upcoming season would be a fool’s errand.
There will be multiple teams interested if Rodgers returns, and three make the most sense for him to sign with if he has one final dance in him.
Obviously, the Steelers are in that trio if Rodgers wants to come back. He knows facilities, got along with the team, and had little to no drama in his year run with Pittsburgh.
He would also be linking up with his old coach, Mike McCarthy, with whom he won a Super Bowl almost two decades ago.
The best choice, if they want him, would be the Minnesota Vikings. He would instantly have a superstar wide receiver in Justin Jefferson to throw to and a dynamic, offensive-minded head coach in Kevin O’Connell.
Rodgers wanted to join the Vikings last year and had discussions with the franchise before they ultimately shut down the veteran, wanting to give rookie J.J. McCarthy the freedom to start at QB without feeling like he could be replaced at any time by Rodgers.
The Vikings are probably wishing they had Rodgers last season, as their QB situation kept them out of the playoffs. Now, though, McCarthy is not guaranteed the starting job, and Minnesota wants to bring in a veteran alongside the former Michigan Wolverine.
Finally, there’s the Cleveland Browns.
While on paper that would seem almost psychotic, the Browns do have a strong defense. They also have two first-rounders.
If they used those premium picks to get an electrifying wide receiver and an offensive tackle or even Jeremiyah Love, there’s a possibility of a fun, young offense in Cleveland for Rodgers to mentor.
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