Aaron Rodgers is focused on Sunday night. Beat the Baltimore Ravens and Rodgers is guaranteed at least one more game with the Pittsburgh Steelers. But if the season comes to a close this weekend, Rodgers will have his future to think about. Not committing to any 2026 path, Rodgers acknowledged he’s set to hit free agency. And potentially with more suitors than he had a year ago.
“Whenever the season ends, I’ll be a free agent. There will be options, I would think,” he said via 93.7 The Fan Wednesday afternoon. “Maybe one or two if I decide I still want to play.”
While not explicitly naming them, Rodgers is seemingly hinting at the Minnesota Vikings. A team that opted against pursuing him in the 2025 offseason. Instead, the team remained committed to J.J. McCarthy, its first-round pick who missed his rookie year due to injury. Reports indicated Rodgers would sign with Minnesota if the franchise offered. But Pittsburgh was his only option to keep playing and he signed with the Steelers in early June after a three-month wait.
Rodgers’ season has largely surpassed expectations. He’s played well and found more success than in his difficult 2024 with the New York Jets. McCarthy’s, meanwhile, has been a bumpier ride. While he’s flashed talent, his play has been inconsistent and he’s thrown more interceptions (12) than touchdown passes (11) while completing well under 60 percent of his throws. Injuries have also been a recurring problem. McCarthy’s has played in just nine games this season, missing seven others with his status for Sunday’s finale unclear.
Could Minnesota show interest in Rodgers for 2026? It seems possible. McCarthy did nothing to cement his status as the Vikings’ starter moving forward. The quarterback class is weak in free agency and the draft. Kyler Murray and Tua Tagovailoa are possible cut/trade candidates but had terrible seasons and are at the low points of their career. There may only be one first-round quarterback selected, Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, if Oregon’s Dante Moore and Alabama’s Ty Simpson don’t declare.
While Rodgers comments will draw headlines, he also spent just as much time praising his current team.
“I’ve enjoyed this experience and everybody in Pittsburgh has been fantastic to me on and off the field,” he said. “It’s really what I was hoping for this experience. It’s been even better than I was hoping.”
Rodgers seems to be enjoying his time and having fun again, something he did little of in two failed seasons with New York. A return to Pittsburgh is possible. But Rodgers is always one to keep an open mind and carefully weigh his next decision. One which begins by deciding whether or not to continue playing. If he aims to lace up his cleats in 2026, the next question will be who he does it for.