EDITORIAL: Thank you, Aaron Rodgers

The 2023 football season brought relief and joy to Green Bay Packers fans, and it’s all thanks to Aaron Rodgers—thanks to his absence.

Rodgers’ fortunate departure to the New York Jets gave quarterback Jordon Love the opportunity to show skills that proved to be superior to the fading abilities Rodgers demonstrated in his final season in Green Bay. With the demanding and self-adulating Rodgers gone, the young team played with brio and over achieved to record a winning season.

More of the relief in getting rid of Rodgers was the result of being freed from an embarrassing connection with a man who pursues celebrity off the playing field by acting as though he is an oracle who believes his pronouncements on any given subject are erudite and wise when really they are often foolish and mean spirited.

Rodgers became a well-publicized distraction to the Packers in 2021 when he famously lied about being immunized against Covid, then got the national attention he craved by spouting false information and conspiracy theories about Covid vaccines as a paid performer on ESPN’s Pat McAfee show.

This year, using the same forum, he picked a public fight with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, mocking him for endorsing Covid vaccinations in TV ads. Some commentators suggested that the attack was motivated as much by envy as his obsession with vaccination. Kelce is a bigger star than Rodgers in both football and, with Taylor Swift as his girlfriend, the celebrity world.

Rodgers’ latest fame foray on the McAfee show was to say that late night TV host Jimmy Kimmel was associated with sex pervert Jeffrey Epstein. It was an ugly, false defamation, apparently in retribution for a joke Kimmel told about Rodgers, but it had some interesting results.

First, it provoked a response from Kimmel that succinctly articulated what many people no doubt have been thinking about Rodgers.

“Because he had success on a football field,” Kimmel said, “he believes himself to be an extraordinary being. He genuinely thinks that because God gave him the ability to throw a ball, he’s smarter than everybody else.”

And second, it got Rodgers kicked off the McAfee show by ESPN.

Rodgers has been accurately described as an attention addict. All great athletes get attention, but there are many examples of sport stars who in contrast to Rodgers spend time away from their games helping others rather than covering themselves in added glory.

Running back Aaron Jones, the Packers’ nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year humanitarian award, has devoted his energy and some of his wealth to helping poor families in Texas and Wisconsin meet their children’s basic needs. He also started what he calls his Yards for Shoes Campaign, buying shoes for children for each yard he gains on the playing field.

Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks is known almost as much for his altruism as his otherworldly basketball skills. He supports causes in Wisconsin with his financial contributions and also with hands-on work, such as donning an apron and serving dinners to raise money for Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin. In 2020, he donated $100,000 to give some extra pay to part-time workers at the Bucks’ arena, Fiserv Forum.

Giannis’ teammates and fellow seven-footers, the twins Brook and Robin Lopez, donated money for 5,700 students at Milwaukee and Waukesha schools to choose five books each at Scholastic Book Fairs and keep them. At one school they helped the students pick out books.

Elsewhere in the sports world, some of the biggest names stand out for their charitable work. This includes a number of athletes who play Rodgers’ position, the likes of quarterbacks Russell Wilson, Jalen Hurts and the retired Eli Manning. Another NFL player noted for his generosity is Rodgers’ nemesis Travis Kelce, whose foundation has donated large sums for scholarships for underprivileged children.

As for Rodgers, he was not going to let a season-ending injury that occurred four plays into his first game as a New York Jet deny him the attention he covets. He kept the focus on himself by promoting the fantasy he would return to play in the 2023 season, and then late in the season as much said it was all kind of a joke. At home games, while his teammates were on the field trying (and usually failing) to win games, he performed for the crowd by throwing passes on the sideline.

The Jets paid $75 million to get Rodgers in addition to the cost of meeting his demands to put some of his former Packers buddies on the payroll.

The Jets may be suffering from buyer’s remorse, while the Packers are enjoying seller’s delight.