NFL folks having strong opinions about Aaron Rodgers certainly isn’t new. But following the Green Bay Packers’ huge loss in Week 1, and given the possibility they could start the season 0-2 with a loss on Monday Night Football to the rival Detroit Lions, people have been coming out of the woodwork to criticize the superstar quarterback.
His former teammate has questioned his work ethic. An anonymous NFL executive recently blamed all of his offseason activities as proof Rodgers doesn’t care as Tomy Brady does. And over on the CBS pregame show, every single host came together in unison to call out Rodgers for one reason or another in a way that you just don’t see very often when it comes to star players in his position.
SI’s Jimmy Traina shared the video of the segment on Twitter and it’s quite something to watch Boomer Esiason, Nate Burleson, Phil Simms, and Bill Cowher all tear into Rodgers, question his work ethic, question his desire, and call him out for various reasons. And they really, really did not like Rodgers saying everyone needs to relax and not panic after the loss.
I can't remember the last time an entire cast of an NFL network pregame show hammered a big-time player as much as the CBS crew hammered Aaron Rodgers yesterday. https://t.co/1Vhf5ZGBoq via @YouTube
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) September 20, 2021
“I kinda think he’s bored in Green Bay, to be honest with you,” started Esiason. “He’s got a man-bun this year. He found his inner peace in the offseason…”
“He could come back tomorrow with another bad game,” said Burleson, who directed the conversation towards Cowher. “How many times have you said…the offseason is important. I need you guys to show up, even when it’s voluntary?
“And Aaron Rodgers spent the entire offseason, call it what it is, making it about himself…I know how good he is. But what he did in this offseason is a direct result of why he played so bad [in Week 1]…his disposition was bad on the sideline too. It almost seemed like he was uninterested in what was going on.”
Cowher went a different direction and took Rodgers to task for wanting the Packers to make certain personnel moves.
“You’re a player, you play,” said Cowher. “The people in the front office will make decisions. Don’t worry about Jordan Love. And to me, he’s now made it personal. He looks very selfish. He almost looks aloof. And I agree with [Nate Burleson]…you look at him on the sideline and he looks like he really doesn’t care.
“Show me you care. Show me it’s important to you. That the team is more important than who you are. And right now I have not seen that.”
“You’re in the locker room, it’s a distraction,” said Simms. “Everybody comes up to you. ‘Hey James, wanna talk to you, what do you think about Aaron Rodgers?’ That’s all you hear, that’s all that was talked about. To make it short, the best thing that can happen to the Green Bay Packers…they went down there and got whooped by the New Orleans Saints and that’ll straighten them up and give them a better chance to focus and play better.”
Well, tell us what you really think, fellas.
Look, some of this feels a bit too personal. The man-bun comments and the not liking the way Rodgers treated his offseason smacks of a lot of “Football Guys” not liking a guy who does what he wants. But of course, the Packers are 0-1 and have looked pretty bad so far and, right or wrong, that is going to fall on Rodgers’ shoulders. If they turn it around and Aaron throws for five touchdowns tonight against the Lions, a lot of tunes might change. But until then, Rodgers is certainly sleeping in the bed he made, whether these accusations are true or not.
