Pittsburgh Steelers' Aaron Rodgers clears the air on Minnesota Vikings rumor

Mike Moraitis

Pittsburgh Steelers' Aaron Rodgers clears the air on Minnesota Vikings rumor image

Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images

Before he signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, there were rumors floating around that quarterback Aaron Rodgers had interest in joining the Minnesota Vikings.

Reports suggested the Vikings were at least having conversations about signing the veteran quarterback, but ultimately the team decided to stick with J.J. McCarthy.

Signing Rodgers would've made sense for Minnesota, as the team had no idea what it would get out of McCarthy in his first year as a starter, which was problematic for a Vikings team that had its eyes on a Super Bowl after a 14-win season.

Ahead of the Week 4 game against the Vikings in Dublin, Ireland, Rodgers was asked about the Vikings rumors on Wednesday and gave a clear answer about the conversations he had with Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell.

"Aaron Rodgers reiterated that despite reports in spring that the Vikings were interested in signing him, his conversations with coach Kevin O’Connell were personal in nature and nothing more," Joe Rutter of TribLive.com reported.

Through three games, Rodgers has had an up-and-down showing. He looked great in Week 1 but has struggled the past few weeks, although it's hard to completely blame those issues on him, as the Steelers' offensive line has been bad and Rodgers hasn't gotten much support from his rushing attack or lackluster wide receivers group.

Meanwhile, the Vikings are set to start Carson Wentz for the second-straight game after McCarthy suffered an ankle injury in Week 2.

When he has been on the field, McCarthy has struggled outside of a fantastic fourth quarter in the Week 1 win over the Chicago Bears. Wentz didn't have to do much in Minnesota's Week 3 win, but he played well, completing 14-of-20 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns to no picks.

Now, the Vikings will get an up-close-and-personal look at the quarterback they passed on when Pittsburgh and Minnesota do battle on Sunday.

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Mike Moraitis

Mike Moraitis is a freelance writer who covers the NFL for the Sporting News. Over his nearly two decades covering sports, Mike has also worked for Bleacher Report, USA TODAY and FanSided. He hates writing in the third person.