Tuesday's interview with Aaron Rodgers on “The Pat McAfee Show” seemed to elicit reactions from people everywhere…well, almost everywhere.
One place where Rodgers' rants about Jimmy Kimmel, the coronavirus, and Dr. Anthony Fauci just shrugged were at One Jets Drive.
While many believe the Jets should “shut Rodgers out” or tell him to stop talking about non-football topics, the Jets have no problem with Rodgers appearing weekly on McAfee. I don't feel it. After several conversations with people inside the organization on the subject, the feeling around the Jets is that nothing Rodgers says about McAfee will affect the team or the organization. Water coolers may be a hot topic in your office, but not in his park forum.
People who disagree with Rodgers might look at this and say what he's doing is a bad reflection on the Jets. But Rodgers is such a big star that he ended up replacing someone who happened to be his employer. When Rodgers was giving his opinion on the Packers as a player, did his view of the Packers change, or did he just chalk the Packers up as Aaron being Aaron?
Rodgers is as polarizing a figure as the sports world is, but that's because he's only thrown one pass in a Jets uniform and has yet to lead the Jets to a touchdown drive or victory. It's becoming even more obvious now. Once Rodgers is back in uniform and able to play quarterback at a high level, there will be even more tolerance for his opinions, even those who disagree with him.
Some within the team praise Rodgers for having the courage to challenge mainstream media. There are many people who agree with his views on the coronavirus and vaccines, but will never say them publicly for fear of backlash.
I'm not opposed to Rodgers speaking out, but after Tuesday's appearance, there may be some relief within the team's office that Rodgers won't be returning to McAfee for a while. He is expected to return to the show next year, and is sure to be talked about even more there.
When it comes to Rodgers' teammates, most of them don't even know who Kimmel is and don't pay attention to what Rodgers says. For them, it's about what he can do on the football field and what they see from him in the locker room.
Jets players gushed about what they saw from Rodgers on the practice field in recent weeks when he led the scout team against defenses. Rodgers is the key to turning things around for the Jets in 2024, and everyone knows that and accepts it. Rodgers' take on RFK Jr. doesn't really matter to a player who just wants a player who can avoid sacks and throw touchdown passes.
“I promise you, no one cares about McAfee Shaw — within these walls, his teammates — no one cares about McAfee Shaw.” Coach Robert Saleh said Monday on “The Michael Kay Show.” “I think it's just noise to the outside world. But what's here and what we all need to do as an organization, as players, as coaches, is to stop sweating the little things and make sure that football I’ll just say we need to get better in terms of trying to worry about winning games.”
Rodgers is beloved by his teammates and the Jets staff. He has been engaged since arriving in April. Since his trade from Green Bay, a natural comparison for Rodgers is Brett Favre, who was traded from the Packers to the Jets in 2008.
Mr. Favre felt like a hired gun here. He didn't seem enthusiastic about the team and was rarely in the locker room. Instead, he spent most of his time in an office near the equipment room.
Rodgers, on the other hand, is constantly sitting at his locker chatting with his teammates. Throughout the spring and summer, he went out to dinner with his teammates and went to plays and sporting events. Many of the young Jets enjoy the attention they get from future Hall of Famers.
So while many would like to see the Jets tell Rodgers to shut up, that's not happening. The honeymoon may be over for Rodgers and the Jets, but their marriage remains strong, and Rodgers' worldview and the way he expresses it won't change that.
