Free-agent quarterback Aaron Rodgers may or may not prefer to join the Minnesota Vikings over the Pittsburgh Steelers this spring. Still, there was no indication coming off the Easter holiday that the Vikings want to start Rodgers over 2024 first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy. 

For an article published on Monday, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter indicated people with the Vikings and Steelers haven’t slammed the door shut regarding a possible trade for current Atlanta Falcons backup Kirk Cousins. Cousins lost his starting job to 2024 rookie Michael Penix Jr. this past December.

“Atlanta has asked for any acquiring team to pay $20M of the $45M worth of guarantees left on Cousins’ contract,” Schefter explained. “To date, no team has been willing to do that, and no team is expected to be willing to. But what happens this weekend — and which franchises come out of the draft with or without rookie quarterbacks — could influence how much guaranteed money a team might be willing to absorb on Cousins’ contract. There is a feeling around the league that a team, whether it is the Vikings or Steelers, might be willing to pay down roughly $10M.”

While Cousins previously played well under Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell from September 2022 up until the 36-year-old suffered a torn Achilles in October 2023, Cousins also has a full no-trade clause attached to his contract and reportedly does not want a team interested in acquiring him to select a quarterback in the first round of the upcoming draft. That said, he may not have many options available to him if it’s true that the Cleveland Browns aren’t interested in trading for his services. 

One would assume O’Connell would only push for a Cousins trade if McCarthy has a rough spring as he continues to recover from the full meniscus repair that sidelined him for all of last season. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh could draft a quarterback like Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders or Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart in the first round on Thursday night. 

Perhaps Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin could convince Cousins to relocate to the Steel City by promising the veteran he’ll start over longtime backup Mason Rudolph and a first-year pro through at least a portion of the 2025 season. Dart and Alabama’s Jalen Milroe are to-be rookies who have been linked with the Steelers and are considered projects for the future who should sit behind a proven starter this fall. 

“How much any team would be willing to pay also would influence the compensation it gives up,” Schefter added about a club possibly trading for Cousins. “The higher the payment, the lower the draft compensation; the lower the payment, the higher the draft compensation. The Falcons and Cousins, who has a no-trade clause, recognize their future is not together, and how it will play out could very well be influenced by this draft.”

In short, Rodgers may not want to wait too much longer to accept any offer he’s received from the Steelers unless he’s willing to potentially lose that gig to Cousins as soon as the final weekend of April.