Charlotte Wilder: Aaron Rodgers’ latest ESPN interview shows ‘desperate desire to be relevant

Credit: ESPN; Sports Gossip Show

The outcome of Aaron Rodgers’ appearance on  The Pat McAfee Show this week was completely predictable, with Rodgers once again ranting about the 2020 pandemic and bashing ESPN and Disney .

Many times since McAfee joined ESPN in late 2023, Rodgers has joined the show and beat the same drum. The big difference this year is that the interview came amid a seemingly positive point in the larger arc of Rodgers’ career and ahead of a last dance in the NFL.

By complaining about the media while participating in an interview with mainstream media, and by drudging up old controversies around his vaccination status, Rodgers is simply demonstrating his “hypocrisy” and “desperate desire to be relevant,” said  Sports Gossip Show host Charlotte Wilder in the most recent episode of the show .

“I think it shows how hypocritical he is. I think it shows how he’s also an unreliable narrator, we can’t really believe anything he says about himself,” she said. “And it’s almost to the point where when he says he’s not going to start a podcast, I’m pretty sure that means he’s gonna start a podcast. I’m pretty sure he’s gonna take meetings with ESPN when he’s done playing to talk about working for [them].”

“I think that this is all about his desperate desire to be relevant constantly, all the time. I don’t believe him that he’s going to go gently into that good night.”

With the exception of the  McAfee Show and various conspiracy-oriented podcasts, Rodgers has largely shut down media appearances since the pandemic. The quarterback lost a handful of sponsorship opportunities and seemingly is no longer coveted by NFL broadcasters . However, Wilder sees Rodgers’ anti-media bent as perhaps more performative than genuine, and expects Rodgers to welcome the pursuit of corporate networks if they come calling.

Fellow Sports Gossip host Madeline Hill believes Rodgers’ inability to fully let his relationship with the media go has turned into a cycle where he turns fans off with his actions, and then tries to win them over again. Rodgers, she said, is “desperate to be seen and liked by football fans,” at a level in line with his historic greatness on the field.

“I think that some of his anger, probably, if I was his therapist, stems from the fact that he doesn’t have goodwill with the public,” Hill added.

“So then, it’s almost like he’s doubling down on the anger because he’s just so butt-hurt and upset, and this is what you get. When really, he should just be quiet and he could have gone on Pat McAfee and done just a very normal interview … but he didn’t do that.”

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