Aaron Rodgers to the Vikings is the Brett Favre reboot nobody wants or needs

We need Rodgers to make a decision so we can (hopefully) stop talking about him so much — but we’re not holding our breath.

The first week of free agency is in the rearview mirror and there are a number of big-time changes that have happened across the league.

We are still waiting on a handful of things to shake out before the waters will fully calm, but they mostly have to do with some older quarterbacks who are more about headlines than results these days. More on that in a bit.

As free agency warped several NFL rosters that means that our thoughts and opinions on them have changed. We here at The Skinny Post, Michael Peterson and RJ Ochoa, are here to let you know what we think.

Let’s discuss.

Aaron Rodgers to the Vikings would be the worst reboot ever

RJ:

Last week we discussed how the Aaron Rodgers of everything feels so boring right now. In the time since then it feels like, judging by the internet, the idea of him joining the Minnesota Vikings has picked up steam.

Personally speaking, I hate reboots. Don’t ruin something that once was. I’m not saying that I loved the time when Brett Favre was the quarterback for Minnesota, but this would be such a boring way for Rodgers’ career to end. Obviously Rodgers has changed the way that people feel about him over the last few years, but we can all admit that he is still one of the greatest to ever play the game. For him to go out in the exact same fashion as his predecessor would be so flat and dull.

Michael:

I really, really thought we would go at least one week without talking about Aaron Rodgers, but here we are. He sure does have a way of staying at the forefront of the football news cycle, no matter where we are on the calendar.

So here’ the thing: I think the Vikings are the best case scenario for Rodgers if he wants to chase the last bit of success in his career. However, I actually think signing him would be close to the worst-case scenario for Minnesota. Kevin O’Connell has built one of the best locker rooms in the NFL and the last thing I could see him do is bring in a guy who has long been a guy to be at odds with teammates who aren’t playing up to “his standard.”

I just think signing Rodgers would be akin to tossing a brick into a drying machine. It’s going to be loud and it’s going to get busted up from the inside until it no longer runs smoothly.

Cincinnati broke the bank for their wide receivers

Michael:

I knew the Bengals were going to get deals done for both Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, but I did not expect the latter to also sign for over $100 million, as well.

Chase’s $161.1 million over four years is insane but runs right along with what he’s done for that offense. Higgins $115 million over the same span is the most for a team’s WR2 in NFL history. That’s what I can’t wrap my head around. He’s a good receiver! He’s also missed 10 games over the past two seasons! That’s a lot of money for a player that has never stayed healthy for an entire season outside of his rookie year in 2020.

The Bengals handing out this money is them pushing all the chips in on the offense being the exact same as it was in 2024. Bringing them both back is a good start, but history sort of says it was an outlier and they’re more than likely going to revert back towards the mean than continue on this upwards trajectory.

I could be so incredibly wrong! I get that! But imagine if either gets hurt or they simply don’t play all that well comparatively. Is the defense going to be any more competitive in 2025? It was kind of the one big thing that kept them out of the playoffs!

But hey, huck it, chuck it football. Amirite?

RJ:

Forgive me for making this about something other than Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins here, but I do not know that we have seen a single player change a franchise the way that Joe Burrow has with the Bengals.

Obviously the biggest sign of this is how competitive the Bengals have been, but consider that we are talking about one of the more frugal franchises in the league and how they are dishing out cash left and right (seemingly). A big reason for this is/was obviously that Burrow asked them to keep his weapons in tow in Chase and Higgins.

I’m not saying that the Bengals are suddenly completely different, but there is no question that their eyes have been opened and that they are willing to do what they need to in this window. That is very cool.

What a home run of a pick Burrow continues to be, especially for Bengals fans.

Who is your biggest winner/loser from the first week of free agency?

Michael:

My biggest winner is split between a pair of NFC North teams in the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings.

New Bears head coach Ben Johnson had a good plan in his first offseason and he stuck to it by signing a brand new trio of players to reshape the interior of the offensive line. Drew Dalman was the best center available. They then trade for Rams right guard Jonah Jackson and Chiefs All-Pro left guard Joe Thuney So yeah, life is good for Caleb Williams! He needed protection and Johnson delivered.

For the Vikings, my reasoning is simple. They needed to get better along the interior on both sides of the ball. They did just that by signing defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave for Brian Flores while adding center Ryan Kelly and guard Will Fries for Kevin O’Connell.

Bam. Those are much more beefy and intimidating trenches for the Vikes.

As for a loser, I think the Raiders are a fringe team in that regard for me. The move to trade for quarterback Geno Smith obviously raises their floor a good amount, but they made no signings to help build the unit around him. The Seahawks had a good group of weapons for him to rely on. The Raiders essentially have just Brock Bowers at tight end. They need a new WR1 (because Jakobi Meyers should not be that) and that would keep them from having a WR3 named Ramel Keyton (is that even a real person?). Defensively, it’s also just Maxx Crosby with no other real standout name.

This team just needs...more. Everywhere.

RJ:

For me the biggest winner is the Los Angeles Rams. This time a few weeks ago we thought that Matthew Stafford was gone and now not only is he not... but Davante Adams is opposite of Puka Nacua. They appear primed to run unchallenged through the NFC West.

From a losing standpoint, I think I have to stay in the division and go with the San Francisco 49ers. They have gotten picked apart and done nothing to really help their roster from an overall perspective. I have no idea why anyone can believe they will be fine by just running this all back next season.

What team have you changed your mind on the most so far?

RJ:

My answer is a bit strange here, but I am going with the Seattle Seahawks.

The reason this is strange is because I haven’t changed my mind at all. I came into this offseason feeling like they were in a really interesting spot to either commit to Geno Smith or to a full rebuild. By moving on from Geno they appeared headed in one direction, but then in signing Sam Darnold they seemed to be content with just treading water.

I have no idea what the Seahawks are doing. It is weird. I don’t like it. Fix it. Someone. Anyone.

Michael:

I’m going to stick in the NFC West and go with the Rams here for essentially the same reasons you touched on in the previous prompt.

I thought their late-season success was a little fluky due to how pedestrian Matthew Stafford’s passing numbers were for most of the year and prior to their moves made in free agency I would have expected them to actually fall short of the postseason in 2025.

That’s now changed thanks to some really savvy signings that don’t actually fill their roster holes, but further emphasize their strengths. The first was the move to sign Davante Adams to replace Cooper Kupp. Packers coach Matt LaFleur is from the Sean McVay coaching tree so if there’s any other coach who knows how to use him the best, it’s the latter. I’m actually expecting a pretty big year from Adams.

Secondly, the Rams stole defensive tackle Poona Ford from my Chargers and I’m upset about it. The Rams already have a great foundation to their defensive front with 2024 rookies edge rusher Jared Verse and defensive tackle Braden Fiske. They did NOT have to add Ford following his breakout season, but they did, and now they’re going to be even more of a pain in the rear to block.

In a weird way, the Rams seem to have gotten better by leaning even further into where they already excelled instead of trying to round out the lackluster parts of their roster.

Do you agree or disagree with RJ and Michael? Share your thoughts in the comments below!