Aaron Rodgers and I have had a complicated relationship. And it’s not really a relationship. Nor is it very complicated.
I’ve met him once. I’ve never interviewed him, never spoken to him on the phone. In 2016, he called me out for my analysis of issues with the Packers, cautioning the audience to not waste their time reading crap like that. In 2021, I took strong objection to his “I’ve been immunized” word games with reporters.
But that’s all in the past. It’s water under the bridge. Bygone days of days gone by. Currently, I like Aaron Rodgers.
Yeah, I said it. I like this guy who is playing for the Jets.
He’s happy. He’s loose. He loves his teammates. He loves the game. He’s keenly aware that he’s reaching his final football spins around the sun.
Is it an act? At first, I thought he was overdoing it as a middle finger to the Packers’ front office. Now, I think he’s just genuinely pleased with the direction his life and career have taken, and it shows.
Maybe it was the change of scenery. Maybe it was the hours in a dark closet. Whatever, the new Aaron Rodgers is almost as likable as Fred Rogers.
Chris Simms and I discussed the dynamic on Thursday’s PFT Live. Humans can change, grow, and evolve. Rodgers has. Maybe I have, too.
Regardless, I find myself wanting to see him and the Jets do well this year. I know that fans of the Bills, Dolphins, and Patriots might not appreciate that, but I can’t help how I feel.
And I currently feel far differently about Aaron Rodgers than I have in a long time. Of course, he might feel the same way he always has about me. But that’s fine. He’s hardly the first, and hardly the last.
Besides, why is it required that we not like the people who dislike us? This “I’ll be nice to you if and only if you’re nice to me” stuff needs to end. It’s OK to be nice to those who aren’t nice to us back, to like those who don’t like us back.
For now, I like Aaron Rodgers.
Maybe it was something I ate.