Quarterback Sam Darnold of the Minnesota Vikings.
The Minnesota Vikings can go a half dozen different ways at quarterback, including one that involves dealing for among the most hated rivals in franchise history.

Sam Darnold unquestionably cost himself some money with two poor games in Week 18 against the Detroit Lions and on Wild Card Weekend against the Los Angeles Rams when the lights were shining at their brightest. That said, Spotrac still projects he will bump his annual salary from $10 million in 2024 to $40 million per season over a new four-year contract.

It doesn’t make sense for Minnesota to pay Darnold that much money unless the franchise believes he can sustain the status of a top-10 quarterback for years to come, particularly because J.J. McCarthy is on a rookie deal worth $22 million total.

However, it’s also non-sensical to go into next season without a proven veteran to either compete with and/or back up McCarthy, who missed the entirety of his rookie campaign with a knee injury, will play next year at 22 and has never taken a regular-season snap in the NFL.

Daniel Jones, the former New York Giants starter who joined the Vikings mid-season, is a potential option. However, if that doesn’t happen, New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers could prove a possibility.

“It’s not difficult to figure out where Rodgers would look to land if he escaped from New York: Just simply rule out non-contenders or teams already set at QB. Once you’ve done that, two teams come into plain view: the Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers,” Colin Keane of ON SI wrote Friday, January 17. “And with the Steelers reportedly lacking interest in Rodgers, the Vikings stand out even more as a landing spot.”

GettyNew York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

There are a few paths by which Rodgers could end up in Minnesota and Darnold with the Jets, as Keane suggested.

Darnold will be an unrestricted free agent in mid-March if the Vikings don’t extend him before then. At that point he can sign with any team interested.

Meanwhile, Rodgers is technically under contract with the Jets through 2025, which means that organization will either have to trade or cut him during the offseason for the four-time MVP to leave.

The Jets could easily decide to do so, as they are hiring a new general manager and head coach in the coming weeks, which Rodgers acknowledged on “The Pat McAfee Show.”

“I think everybody understands that it’s gonna come down to the GM, coach and myself,” Rodgers said. “Whether we all want to do a dance together, or if it’s not in the cards.”

Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones Leaving in Free Agency Can Create Path for Aaron Rodgers to Vikings

GettyQuarterback Daniel Jones of the Minnesota Vikings.
Darnold has so much value on the free agent market, despite tanking down the stretch to a degree, that Minnesota might consider franchising or even extending him and then trying to trade him.

That path forward would potentially muddle the acquisition of Rodgers.

But if the Vikings simply let Darnold walk, which is a real possibility, and the Jets cut Rodgers, which is perhaps the most likely outcome, Minnesota and Rodgers could be a fit on a one-year contract based on Jones’ future with the franchise.

Jones makes just as much sense as a backup/competitor for McCarthy as Rodgers does, perhaps even more because of his age. However, if Minnesota lets Jones walk in free agency they may be able to get a compensatory pick in return depending on the contract he signs, which may incentivize the Vikings to go a different way.