Aug 28, 2021; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) walks to the sidelines prior to the game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers have been locked in quite a bit of drama recently. However, it’s not as though this is an entirely recent phenomenon, especially given Rodgers’s penchant for being outspoken.

You might remember some drama from back in 2019 when the Packers moved on from Mike McCarthy and hired Matt LaFleur. Writing for Bleacher Report, Tyler Dunne, who had covered Green Bay previously for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, reported that Rodgers and Mark Murphy, former Packers president and CEO, had a strong conversation regarding the coaching situation. The infamous quote was that Murphy was said to have told Rodgers “don’t be the problem” after informing him that the Packers would hire LaFleur without consulting him. The direct quote came from an anonymous source, per Dunne.

Rodgers appeared on The Pat McAfee Show on Wednesday as the Packers get ready for the 2021 NFL season. Given the off-season drama that has followed him and the team this summer, they got into a discussion around his relationship with Green Bay and that infamous conversation came up. Rodgers did not mince words in his reaction to it.

“That never f***ing happened,” said Rodgers. “That alleged conversation never happened.”

Well then…tell us how you really feel, Aaron.

Rodgers hasn’t been shy about denying that this conversation happened before. In 2019, he referred to the article as a “smear attack.”

“This was a smear attack by a writer looking to advance his career, talking to mostly irrelevant, bitter players who all have an agenda, whether they’re advancing their own careers or just trying to stir old stuff up,” said Rodgers. “What happens is the same, tired media folks picking it up and talking about it, which just emphasizes their opinion about me already.

“The crazy thing is, there’s super-slanted opinions in that piece stated as fact, and then there’s quote-unquote facts that are just outright lies.”

During an appearance on The Colin Cowherd Show in 2019, Dunne defended the story, the reporting, and the quote.

So who is telling the truth? It’s hard to believe a credible reporter would make up a conversation and print it, but Rodgers seems pretty adamant that it didn’t happen and is happy to publicly say that. It’s a classic he-said-he-said situation and probably always will be.

About Sean Keeley

Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Editorial Strategy Director for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.