Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers probably didn’t realize he would be joining O.J. Simpson on the list of the worst men to ever play for the NFL when he revealed last week that he was not vaccinated against COVID-19. But such are the times.
Rodgers’s vaccination status came into question after it was reported that he had tested positive for the coronavirus last week and would have to sit out the Packers’ matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. Though he vaguely told reporters in August that he was “immunized,” Rodgers clarified in an interview over the weekend that he had not gotten the shot against COVID-19 because he is “allergic” to an ingredient in the mRNA vaccines.
“I believe strongly in bodily autonomy and the ability to make choices for your body, not to have to acquiesce to some woke culture or crazed group of individuals who say you have to do something,” he explained. “Health is not a one-size-fits-all for everybody, and for me, it involved a lot of study in the offseason.”
He was immediately derided as “stupid” and “despicable” for not getting the vaccine but acting as though he had. (Rodgers participated in press briefings and allegedly did not wear a mask inside training facilities, even though unvaccinated players are barred from media opportunities and required to wear masks, according to the NFL). One sports commentator even demanded that he retire from the NFL since he doesn’t want to follow “the COVID rules.”
Never mind that he’s the league’s reigning MVP and one of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play the game.
Rodgers is guilty only of having an opinion on COVID-19 that differs from the socially accepted narrative. He’s far from the only one. The media dragged podcast host Joe Rogan after he revealed his doctor had prescribed him ivermectin when he contracted COVID-19. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis earned the nickname “DeathSantis” from leftists who accused him of putting children’s lives in danger because he opposed school mask mandates. The lesson is simple: Ask any question about the prescribed COVID-19 dogma, and you’ll face the shame mob.
Luckily, Rodgers is too good at what he does to care. So, it does not matter how often the media dismiss him as an “anti-vaxxer”; the Green Bay Packers need him to win games. And he knows it.
