Rodgers lied; don’t let him off the hook
Aaron Rodgers flat-out lied and he knows it. Everyone else now knows it, too, including his loyal fan base.
Despite his routine heroics on the football field, the future Hall of Fame quarterback has never been much of an off-the-field role model. So it’s no shocker that he manipulated the truth during a preseason news conference when a reporter asked if Rodgers was vaccinated against COVID-19.
“Yeah, I’ve been immunized,” Rodgers replied nonchalantly during an otherwise candid exchange with media.
I remember watching it and being impressed with his honesty about several issues facing the Green Bay Packers and his future career in the NFL. I didn’t think twice about Rodgers’ choice of words — immunized versus vaccinated. Rodgers did, obviously. And in hindsight, so did the Packers, I say.
On Wednesday, NFL fans learned that Rodgers tested positive for the virus, forcing him to remain out of action for at least 10 days, according to league rules regarding unvaccinated players. Rodgers will miss Sunday night’s marquee matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs and future Hall of Fame quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
On the same day Rodgers tested positive for COVID-19, he tested positive for being an arrogant slickster trying to pull off a trick play on the league and on fans. It almost went the distance if he didn’t test positive.
Since Rodgers came into the league in 2005, I’ve admired and respected him as a player. Not so much as a person. He’s always been entertaining as a sports athlete. He’s never been likable as a human.
His cockiness on the field guided him to become a Super Bowl champion, a three-time MVP and one of the best QBs to ever play the game. His overconfidence off the field has sacked him for losses again and again in the public eye throughout his career. For his many critics and most Bears fans, Rodgers’ current situation is well deserved. Can he pull off a Hail Mary miracle and escape with a public relations victory? I don’t think so.
The NFL is now investigating whether Rodgers violated any COVID-19 protocols since the season began.
“The league is aware of the current situation in Green Bay and will be reviewing the matter with the Packers,” the NFL said Wednesday in a statement.
If so, Rodgers and the Packers face serious fines or the possible loss of future draft picks. Neither of those punishments really matter. It would only cover the league’s no-tolerance public image regarding its COVID-19 protocols for public health and players’ health. The only punishment that matters would be a suspension, which could cost the Packers a shot at another Super Bowl.
“Aaron Rodgers will not be suspended for this,” NFL insider
Jay Glazer told fans Thursday night before the Colts-Jets game on FOX.
Of course he won’t. He’s Aaron (expletive) Rodgers.
This issue comes down to Rodgers’ intentional miswording in August and new allegations that the team ignored it or covered it up because, well, he’s the franchise player and a superstar in the league.
According to NFL.com, Rodgers received a “homeopathic treatment from his personal doctor to raise his antibody levels,” which he hoped would be enough to earn a vaccinated status. It wasn’t enough, it shouldn’t be enough, and the league denied his request. Rodgers was correctly labeled as unvaccinated by the league.
If you’re a critic of COVID-19 vaccines, for whatever reason, it doesn’t change the fact that Rodgers knew the league’s rule and intentionally violated it. It’s the team’s responsibility to enforce its COVID protocols within team facilities and related gatherings, the NFL said Wednesday.
The most obvious protocol violation is Rodgers not wearing a mask during indoor press conferences at a team facility. If you’re a critic of wearing masks in public, for whatever reason, it doesn’t change the fact that Rodgers knew the league’s rule and intentionally violated it. Multiple times.
He also attended a Halloween party without a mask along with other Packers players, another rule violation.
Rodgers didn’t care then. Rodgers doesn’t care now. He deceived anyone in his social huddles except for those people who knew beforehand that “immunized” meant “not vaccinated,” which likely includes team management and his teammates.
In that preseason news conference, Rodgers also said, “I think it’s a personal decision. I’m not going to judge those guys,” regarding players who didn’t get vaccinated. What he was hinting at was not to eventually judge him. Too late. Unlike those players, he’s being judged for lying, not for being unvaccinated.
“Aaron is a Karen, that’s the fact of the matter,” late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel told viewers Thursday night. “Honestly, the only thing worse than not getting vaccinated when you’re in close contact with other people is letting them think you’re vaccinated when you’re not. It’s basically the COVID equivalent of ‘the condom fell off.’ ”
Rodgers deserves the mockery and the scrutiny.
His four-word lie in August,
“Yeah, I’ve been immunized,” should become part of a future clue on his beloved game show “Jeopardy.” The answer, in question form, would be, “Which team player actually cares only about himself ?”