The Minnesota Vikings are going to add a veteran quarterback this offseason, but just who that player will be remains an open question.
One player it won’t be is Aaron Rodgers, which the Vikings made clear on Wednesday, March 19.
“The Vikings spent the better part of a week considering their options after Rodgers made clear he preferred to sign with the team, sources said,” Kevin Seifert of ESPN wrote. “The internal deliberations intensified after 2024 starter Sam Darnold signed with the Seattle Seahawks and free agent Daniel Jones, whom the Vikings envisioned as a veteran wingman for McCarthy, rejected their contract offer and signed instead with the Indianapolis Colts. Minnesota has received trade interest in [J.J.] McCarthy but has rebuffed those inquiries, a source told ESPN.”
So with McCarthy the clear favorite to start for the Vikings in 2025, the pertinent decision left for Minnesota to make now involves the veteran who will back him up.
Seifert linked the Vikings to multiple options Wednesday, and among them was former Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco.
Joe Flacco Led Browns to Playoffs in 2023, Won Starting Job Over Colts’ Anthony Richardson for Stretch Last Season
GettyFormer Indianapolis Colts quarterback Joe Flacco.
Flacco most recently played for the Colts in 2024.
He began the season as the team’s backup QB behind second-year signal caller Anthony Richardson. However, the coaching staff eventually benched Richardson for Flacco due to poor performance. Richardson ultimately won his starting job back, though Flacco appeared in eight games and started six of those, throwing for 1,761 yards, 12 TDs and 7 INTs on a completion rate of 65.3%.
Flacco joined up with the Cleveland Browns in mid-season 2023, leading the team to a 4-1 record down the stretch and a wildcard playoff berth in the AFC. He tallied 1,616 passing yards, 13 TDs and 8 INTs over that run.
For his career, Flacco has tallied 45,697 passing yards, 257 TDs and 162 INTs. He will play next season at 40 years of age.
Outside Chance Vikings, Kirk Cousins Could Reunite This Offseason
GettyFormer Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Other veteran options for the Vikings to play behind McCarthy include Carson Wentz and Kirk Cousins.
Wentz was the No. 2 QB for the Kansas City Chiefs last season, while Cousins started for the Atlanta Falcons for several games before the team benched him in favor of rookie QB Michael Penix Jr.
Atlanta may choose to cut ties with Cousins after the NFL draft late next month, which would be the only real chance for the Vikings to reunite with the 36-year-old who started in Minnesota for six seasons before leaving for the Falcons in 2024.
Wentz has expressed interest in joining the Browns on a one-year deal, assuming the team doesn’t add Russell Wilson. Wilson is a free agent and waiting on Rodgers to choose between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Giants, both of which have extended offers to the four-time MVP.
Rodgers’ options dwindled to those two teams after the Vikings announced Wednesday that they would not be pursuing him in free agency.
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