The Minnesota Vikings continue to be under the spotlight going into the 2025 season, as free agency has been huge in improving the team.
Not only did the Vikings fortify multiple areas on the roster, but general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah also made things significantly better in the trenches with two players on the interior of both the offensive and defensive lines.
What everyone wants to talk about is what the Vikings are going to do at quarterback going into the season.
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Harrison Smith praises Aaron Rodgers
The biggest point of the quarterback discussion centered around both Sam Darnold and Aaron Rodgers. Darnold signed quickly with the Seattle Seahawks and we were left with over a week of Rodgers discussion. Luckily, that ended this past Wednesday but he’s still being talked about with the Vikings.
At the NFLPA golf tournament in Mexico, Vikings safety Harrison Smith was asked about Rodgers on Up and Adams and he gave an interesting answer.
“He got us plenty of times. I will say Rogers, I’ve played against in my whole career, and he’s my favorite quarterback to watch, and also my least favorite quarterback, because he’s very tough to defend. So I’m not going to speculate on that (coming to Minnesota), but, I have a very great appreciation for him and his talent, and some of the throws he would make. I was just like, What do you want us to do?”
Smith praising Rodgers makes sense. He’s played him 21 times over his career, making him the one player he’s seen the most of anyone in his career. Both have had their share of success in those games and they have a mutual respect for each other.
That respect also comes from a place of knowledge. Smith later shared a story about how Rodgers showed him the ultimate sign of gamesmanship in their matchup during the pandemic season of 2020.
“I would say the funniest one, I think it was like the COVID years. It was dead quiet. He knew I was trying to disguise something, and I was gonna come down closer to the line of scrimmage. And he was under center, and he like took his hands out and was like (waved for him to come closer), to (the line of scrimmage) you’re kind of disrespected.”
The one interesting thing here is the timing. Smith praising Rodgers right now with him still being a free agent will definitely raise some eyebrows, but it’s just a coincidence more than anything.