Early in the off-season, as Aaron Rodgers leaving became a real possibility, the New York Jets emerged as an early contender for his services. Now, with each passing day, those same Jets seem closer and closer to acquiring the future Hall of Famer.
If you look hard enough you can find an opinion about the potential trade that suits your preconceived notions. If you hate it, there’s probably somebody that agrees with you screaming on ESPN right now. And if you love it, there’s also probably somebody that agrees with you screaming on ESPN right now.
One of the most consistent anti-trade narratives floating around has absolutely nothing to do with football. Some think he just won’t survive everything the New York media brings to the table.
Rich Eisen was one of the first people to push this idea along saying:
“I just don’t know if Rodgers fully completely 1000% grasps that whatever happened in Green Bay will not matter in New York. You know. That throw that he missed over the middle, he didn’t see one of his receivers, I think it was Lazard in the playoff game two years ago in the snow against San Francisco. Missed it. The throw was open.…In Green Bay you’ll see some people on Twitter saying Rodgers isn’t perfect but everyone in Green Bay shrugs. Rodgers is our guy. And he’ll do the I love you thing(shows Rodgers hand signal) going off the field. This thing(hand signals) won’t work in New York.
If he comes to New York and misses throws and New England still has its way with the Jets and Belichick still has its way? I don’t know why you’d want to take that on to be very honest with you and plus some of what you’re saying on McAfee show that doesn’t get any run in the local media as far as I’m concerned. Any run in the local media. Some people that hear it and don’t ascribe to the same echo chamber that it appears Rodgers lives in, I think that that would light up 24/7 stations, radio stations, multiple talk shows…I don’t know if Rogers would want a piece of that.”
But today on Eisen’s program when he attempted to go back to the same well, Peter King, one of the most respected journalists in football, pushed back:
“But you know, Rich, I would just make this point. You’re right. You’re right. But you know Aaron Rodgers is a national figure. I don’t think it matters if he plays for the Green Bay Packers or the Walla Walla Walruses. He is going to be a national figure. So if he plays in New York he’s on the back page of the Post. I’m not saying he doesn’t care. I think he cares about a lot of that stuff. But this has been his life in the past few years where everything he says is huge news. So I’ve heard this ‘oh boy, the New York media’ and I’m not discounting that totally, but I am saying I think media has changed in recent years. So with a guy like Aaron Rodgers it’s much more about the whole national scene and not oh boy he’s getting some really nice questions from the Green Bay press Gazette.”
It’s nice to see someone with King’s platform acknowledge how the media has focused on Rodgers in recent years. The whole interview is fantastic, especially if you wanna listen to a real football journalist who isn’t obsessed with breaking fake news and giving hot takes. Click here.
King is absolutely right. The idea that Aaron Rodgers hasn’t faced real scrutiny because he lives in Wisconsin is nonsense. This isn’t a 1960s small town where everybody gets all their information from one newspaper. We live in the modern social media era and no person in sports has been more scrutinized than Rodgers the last few years, not even LeBron James. Just think about it. During the most divisive time in American history as people took their sides during a pandemic over a vaccine debate, Rodgers became the poster child of a side that the national media didn’t agree with. Do you think he’s gonna go to New York and deal with something harder than he’s already dealt with? Don’t be ridiculous.
And oh by the way, if the Jets are winning no one will care. This is a franchise that has been starved for success. If they are one of the best teams in the NFL Aaron Rodgers could go up to the podium every week and talk about nothing but conspiracy theories and everybody would be fine.
Is Rodgers petty, annoying, and a bit dramatic? Sure. But I just described 90% of Hall of Fame athletes. Don’t let a silly narrative fool you into thinking that one of the greatest athletes we’ve ever seen can’t handle the media in a big city.
