Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Packer Plus
Arkush has Rodgers starring in ‘The Jerk’
It won’t be unanimous.
Hub Arkush, a veteran Chicago sportswriter, told the city’s 670 The Score radio station last week that he will not cast his NFL MVP vote for Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Arkush delivered a scathing review of Rodgers. He did not pull any punches.
“I don’t think you can be the biggest jerk in the league and punish your team, and your organization and your fan base the way he did and be the Most Valuable Player,” Arkush said. “Has he been the most valuable on the field? Yeah, you could make that argument, but I don’t think he is clearly that much more valuable than Jonathan Taylor or Cooper Kupp or maybe even Tom Brady. So from where I sit, the rest of it is why he’s not gonna be my choice.
“Do I think he’s gonna win it? Probably. A lot of voters don’t approach it the way I do, but others do, who I’ve spoken to. But one of the ways we get to keep being voters is we’re not allowed to say who we are voting for until after the award has been announced. I’m probably pushing the envelope by saying who I’m not voting for. But we’re not really supposed to reveal our votes.”
He was just warming up.
“I just think that the way he’s carried himself is inappropriate,” Arkush said. “I think he’s a bad guy, and I don’t think a bad guy can be the most valuable guy at the same time.”
Arkush said off-field issues had a lot to do with his decision. Rodgers is unvaccinated and spent 10 days on the COVID-19 reserve list.
“There’s no guidelines,” Arkush said. “We are told to pick the guy who we think is most valuable to his team. And I don’t think it says anywhere, ‘strictly on the field,’ although I do think he hurt his team on the field by the way he acted off the field.”
In other words, a Chicago guy won’t vote for a guy who “owns” the Bears.
Rodgers fired back saying Arkush was a “bum.” He also said he never had
met or been interviewed by Arkush. OK.
Apparently Arkush has met and interviewed Rodgers for Westwood One radio after several games.
Arkush is also a weekly guest as an NFL Insider on the Packers pregame radio show. He just doesn’t wear a No. 12 jersey.
All this MVP talk is entertaining. But the Packers just lost to the worst team in the NFL heading into the playoffs.
The focus needs to be on the Lombardi Trophy.
Not the MVP award.
Fearless forecasts
Las Vegas at Cincinnati: The Raiders are still trying to figure out how they didn’t tie the Chargers. And the Bengals are trying to figure out how they won their division. Joe Burrow has already picked out his victory cigar. Bengals 27, Raiders 23.
New England at Buffalo: Does anyone really need a third dose of this matchup? The Patriots have never played a road wild-card game under Bill Belichick. In other words, he won’t know what color of hoodie to wear. Patriots 14, Bills 9.
Philadelphia at Tampa Bay: OK, will the Buccaneers retire Antonio Brown’s jersey before the game? Buccaneers 41, Eagles 14.
San Francisco at Dallas: The 49ers are the best sleeper team since the Rip Van Winkle Pillow Cases. Mike McCarthy will be longing for the wind chill of Green Bay during this. 49ers 27, Cowboys 16.
Pittsburgh at Kansas City: The Ben Roethlisberger Farewell Tour reaches a dead end. Maybe the Chiefs will give him a certificate for some barbecue. Chiefs 38, Steelers 20.
Arizona at Los Angeles Rams: The Cardinals have asked Roger Goodell if they can spot the Rams 17 points because that’s when they wilt faster than a tulip in the Sahara Desert. Cardinals 21, Rams 17.
Vinelines
Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel, after Arkush said he wouldn’t vote for Rodgers for MVP because he “is the biggest jerk in the league”: “If we started eliminating professional athletes from winning awards because they are jerks, every sport’s Hall of Fame would be the size of a broom closet.”
Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle: “Aaron Rodgers might be the biggest jerk in sports, but let’s not crown him without first considering other worthy candidates.”
Steve Rosenbloom, former Chicago Tribune columnist: “Question is, who fired Matt Nagy? The GM who’s a better interior decorator than a roster builder? The president who negotiated the deal for the smallest NFL stadium? The random McCaskey from the Lucky Sperm Club? The answer tells you whether the Bears will crap on their fans again.”
Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times: “Jacksonville Jaguars fans planned to attend Sunday’s season finale dressed as clowns to protest the team’s ineptitude. Hey, it was either that or humiliate themselves by wearing their Jags jerseys.”
From Packer Plus wire reports and other news sources. Send emails to mhart@journalsentinel.com