Aaron Rodgers’ next NFL team: Why QB is most likely to delay decision; could Steelers move come after draft?

Aaron Rodgers became a free agent for the first time in his NFL career this offseason. Almost two weeks after all 32 teams were first permitted to negotiate with unsigned veterans, however, the future Hall of Fame quarterback remains without a home. The New York Jets said goodbye, the Minnesota Vikings said no thanks (for now), and only a few others appear legitimately interested in signing the former MVP.

Headlining the “others” are the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers, each of whom has signed a veteran backup — Jameis Winston and Mason Rudolph, respectively — but lacks a surefire Week 1 starter. The Vikings sniffed around the idea of adding Rodgers in a reenactment of the Brett Favre finish but now seem content with kicking off the J.J. McCarthy era. The Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans are in full-on rebuild mode, preparing to potentially reset the quarterback spot early in the 2025 NFL Draft.

All that said, is anyone really expecting Rodgers to make his decision before the draft?

At this point, basically everything is set at the quarterback position league-wide, barring a surprise blockbuster trade or catastrophic injury. Something like 27 of the NFL’s 32 teams are committed — either contractually or philosophically — to a veteran starter, and the few teams without a proven arm penciled into a top gig have relatively clear options and/or fallback plans:

• The Titans own the No. 1 overall pick in the draft
• The Browns own the No. 2 pick and also acquired Kenny Pickett via trade
• The Giants own the No. 3 pick and also signed Jameis Winston
• The Steelers own the No. 21 pick and also signed Mason Rudolph
• The Vikings used last year’s No. 10 pick on J.J. McCarthy

If we effectively rule out the Browns and Titans as logical destinations for Rodgers, who’d be settling for a lowly team in transition even if either organization suddenly expressed interest, that leaves three feasible landing spots: Minnesota, Pittsburgh and New York. Which brings us back to square one.

The Vikings are easily the most appealing from Rodgers’ perspective, given their skill talent and coaching prowess, but Rodgers needs them more than they need him. After letting Kirk Cousins and Sam Darnold walk in consecutive years, the Vikings are ripe to let their handpicked prospect grow into the job. And even if McCarthy turns in the most atrocious spring ever known to the Twin Cities area, whether due to complications from knee surgeries or a lack of NFL experience, they wouldn’t dial Rodgers — let alone commit to a rewriting of the entire 2025 plan — until the last minute.

So why, if you’re Rodgers, rush to put pen to paper for either the Giants or Steelers? Because you’re scared Russell Wilson, the other big-name quarterback left unsigned, will beat you to it? Sorry, but Pittsburgh isn’t banging down Wilson’s door for a delayed reunion after his sluggish 2024 finish. They let him hit the open market, for crying out loud. And if the Giants really, truly wanted Wilson, well, they could’ve easily locked him up by now. Even if Russ lands in New York tomorrow, the Steelers will be in the same position they’re in now: openly interested in Rodgers as a win-now rental, but with little meaningful competition — and therefore no imminent pressure — to secure his services.

If, on the other hand, Rodgers holds tight and gives neither team a firm answer, waiting all the way until during or after the draft, he’ll know exactly what he’s getting himself into. If the Giants spend the No. 3 pick on a quarterback, or trade up for one, well, he’s probably got no place there anyway, unless New York is committed to sitting a top-five pick behind both Rodgers and Winston in 2025. Then again, under Giants management, who knows? The Steelers, meanwhile, may well target a quarterback of their own in the draft, but Rodgers would then have a better sense of what kind of room he’d be entering, as a mentor.

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Basically, there’s very little that can happen between now and the start of the draft — a month’s time — that could chiefly influence Rodgers’ NFL future. If, for example, the San Francisco 49ers lose Brock Purdy to a freak offseason injury, well, maybe Kyle Shanahan’s on the line and we’re reassessing the entire situation. Or if, out of some unnecessary urge to get someone other than Mason Rudolph in the building, the Steelers attempt to resell their fan base on Wilson, then Rodgers just might think harder about staying in New Jersey, or maybe hanging up the cleats entirely.

It’s no surprise, though, that all indications are Rodgers is in no rush here. Why should he be? The pickings are slim, and they’re not all that inspiring. Maybe, to quote the philosophical quarterback himself, he prefers the “beautiful mystery” of what might occur. Like the Vikings changing their minds. Or a mystery team swooping in for emergency help. Or the Giants or the Steelers or any other NFL team betting, against the odds, that he’s still got some magic left in that 41-year-old arm.