Any idea of another potential outcome has been put all the way to bed now. Aaron Rodgers will sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers and his dream of playing for the Minnesota Vikings will officially go unfulfilled.
To their credit, Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah have not danced around the idea that they discussed adding Rodgers this. year. From the start of the rumors back in March, it seemed Rodgers was a headache O'Connell would not want around J.J. McCarthy, and adding the four-time MVP would be the antithesis of committing to McCarthy as the starting quarterback.
Rodgers has noted how he and O'Connell, with shared California roots, have known each other a long time. So, if in talking to O'Connell in recent months he proposed the idea of coming to play for the Vikings, it feels like O'Connell did him a professional courtesy to take it up the chain to discuss with Adofo-Mensah. Ownership was also possibly involved somewhere in those conversations.
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell opens up about his conversations with Aaron Rodgers
On Friday, O'Connell appeared in-studio on KFAN-FM radio. Co-host Chris Hawkey apologized for asking the Vikings' head coach what (if anything) he was willing to say about discussions with Rodgers, but O'Connell took the question head-on.
"When there was an opportunity — when him and I connected this offseason just to kind of talk about what that would look like — we had a lot of great dialogue about it, but it always was centered around what was best not only for the present in the Minnesota Vikings organization, but the future.
I was very honest about my feelings towards J.J., my obligation that I felt like we were going to give him the best possible situation to begin and thrive on this NFL journey, and let's see where it goes. We stayed in touch and had some communication...
Out of respect for our friendship and everything, that's about as much as really kind of happened."
Here's the full clip of O'Connell's response to Hawkey's inquiry.
So there it is, right from O'Connell. It's doubtful he initiated the idea of Rodgers coming to play for the Vikings, but in regard for their friendship he entertained it and presumably told Rodgers he would discuss it with Adofo-Mensah and others.
The ultimate decision about bringing Rodgers in was going to be a collaborative thing, but O'Connell very likely held the decisive vote. Ultimately, as expected and he has now confirmed, he could not give his full blessing due to a firm commitment to setting McCarthy up to succeed.