Quarterback Aaron Rodgers was still celebrating after the New York Jets' win over the New England Patriots on Wednesday, but that joy quickly faded when he learned one of his former teammates had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
On Tuesday, legendary Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre announced at a congressional hearing that doctors told him in January that he has a neurodegenerative disease.
Both quarterbacks were on the Packers roster from 2005-07, and Rodgers' draft pick in 2005 essentially served as Green Bay's plan to secure a successor to Coach Favre.
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Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre (4) greets Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) after a game at Lambeau Field on November 1, 2009 in Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA. (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports)
Rodgers said it was “difficult” to hear the diagnosis but acknowledged brain damage was one of the risks involved in playing football.
NFL legend Brett Favre reveals symptoms he noticed before his Parkinson's diagnosis
“As you get older, you know, death hits you a little bit harder,” Rogers said Wednesday. “Unfortunately, it actually becomes more normal to hear about death or a cancer diagnosis or a diagnosis like this. For me, it doesn't make you any less sensitive to it.”
“I mean, I feel sorry for him, [wife] “Deanna. Unfortunately, this is part of our game. This is part of the risk of playing in this league, and we know in the back of our minds that one day it may become a reality. Hopefully one day the medication will catch up and ease the symptoms or eradicate some of these issues that we have.”
Green Bay Packers' No. 12 Aaron Rodgers shares a moment with former quarterback Brett Favre during a memorial for the late Bart Starr during halftime of the Minnesota Vikings vs. Green Bay Packers game at Lambeau Field on September 15, 2019 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
When revealing his Parkinson's diagnosis during his testimony, Favre referenced a now-bankrupt concussion treatment company in which he had invested.
“Sadly, I have also lost an investment in a company that I believed was developing a groundbreaking concussion treatment that could help others,” Favre said. “As you can all understand, I have recently been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease so it's too late for me, but this is important to me.”
Former NFL quarterback Brett Favre appears before the House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
The health revelations largely overshadowed the former NFL quarterback's testimony about Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) welfare funds, which have come under scrutiny and are at the heart of a wide-ranging Mississippi lawsuit in which the Super Bowl champion has been embroiled for more than two years.
A 2019 state audit found that more than $77 million in TANF funds had been misappropriated. Favre has not been criminally charged.
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Favre last played in the NFL in 2010. There is no known cure for Parkinson's disease.
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