"Honesty is such a lonely word" — for Aaron Rodgers

… “Aaron Rodgers was deceitful, and he was deceitful purposely”

He called himself “oppressed,” just like Martin Luther King, but one of his former NFL colleagues was buying it. 

Aaron Rodgers, the quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, was suspended by the NFL last week because he had tested positive for Covid. The reality is that he had claimed in August that he had been “immunized,” and the media bought it — as did the NFL. 

And now, everyone has egg on their collective faces because he lied — and no one called him on it even though they knew better.

Rodgers’ argument

Rather than meeting the media after his Covid diagnosis, even virtually, he went on a radio show where he was ensured that he would not be called out for his actions, and he lied and lied and lied,

Rodgers claimed to be allergic to an ingredient in the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. The 37-year-old football player also said he refused to get Johnson & Johnson shot after hearing of people having adverse reactions to it.

The number of people who have had allergic reactions to Covid vaccines is very small, about two to five cases per million doses, according to Dr. Niraj Patel of Atlanta, chair of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology’s Covid-19 Vaccine Task Force.

Rodgers also opened up about receiving monoclonal antibodies. However, he didn't reveal how he gained access to monoclonal antibodies, since they're usually set aside for people at highest risk of severe Covid.

He also raved about taking ivermectin, a drug generally used to deworm animals. The Food and Drug Administration has not authorized or approved the use of ivermectin to treat or prevent Covid-19. The agency has also warned against taking the veterinary form of the drug.

Nicole Acevedo, “No NFL doctor told Aaron Rodgers vaccinated people can’ catch or spread Covid, league says,” NBC News, November 6, 2021

The fallout was immediate with one health care organization cutting ties with him. However, former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back Ryan Clark called him out for his actions. 

Clark lays down the gauntlet

If Rodgers had just said that he had philosophical disagreements with the vaccine and told the NFL that, this would not have been as much an issue, 

The Green Bay Packers should have held him to the protocol. The NFL should have held him to the protocol. 

Now let’s get to what Aaron Rodgers said. Aaron Rodgers was deceitful, and he was deceitful purposely. Aaron Rodgers is extremely intelligent. 

And there’s another way to answer the question about the, quote, unquote, “witch hunt.” 

If they ask you about your vaccination, you can say, “That is a personal decision of mine. I have no comment,” because you do not owe the media anything. You don’t owe them that personal information. The only people that need to know are the NFL and your team.

So you ain’t gotta lie. You can just say, “I have no comment. That’s a personal matter.” So, you’re wrong there … You were being purposely deceitful. You were using wordplay to throw off the scent of something. 

When the media, who will scrutinize you, hears that “you’re immunized,” they won’’t think about the fact that you’re not follow protocol. 

Why? Because of the deceitful gray area you have given us … So, the deceit in it and the intention in it was to get people off your ass. 

He was not oppressed. I am sick and tired of white men bringing up Martin Luther King when they think that they are being oppressed. The things that [King] was talking about being done to black people were done because of their skin color.

Ryan Clark, ESPN, November 6, 2021

NFL fined teams big-time

The reality is that Rodgers should be suspended for violating these protocols, and that should occur after the ten-day quarantine. Since the NFL players association also denied Rodgers’ claim of being “immunized,” an appeal is not likely to help.

And State Farm has to decide whether or not it wants to continue its association with him. 

The Raiders were fined $800,000 during 2020 for violating protocols, while the Saints paid $700,000 and forfeited a draft pick. This is more serious than that. 

If the NFL does not suspend him, other NFL owners who forced their teams to follow the protocols are likely to go ballistic.