Nobody relishes the downfall of Aaron Rodgers quite like Shannon Sharpe.
The ex-NFLer turned media personality has previously taken issue with the soon-to-be 41-year-old quarterback of the New York Jets a couple dozen times before in the past calendar year. Sharpe finds Rodgers to be “smug,” among several other descriptors.
Sharpe feels like he’s always been right about Rodgers. In June, he demanded an apology. Four months later, he teased the Jets — and their fans — over their misguided hype surrounding the future Hall of Fame quarterback while needling those like Dan Orlovsky for what he perceived as an unwillingness to criticize an over-the-hill has been.
But Sharpe has been there every step of the way, undercutting Rodgers at every twist and turn.
And when The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reported over the weekend that Rodgers wanted to continue playing in 2025, just not with the Jets, Sharpe used it as an opportunity to double down on his criticism. Sharpe immediately seized on Russini’s report to mock Rodgers for what he sees as the quarterback’s inflated ego and inability to accept reality.
“Football been stop being important to Aaron Rodgers,” Sharpe said. “Y’all can say what you want to say, Aaron Rodgers…football gave him ability to have the cache to talk about all the other stuff that he cared to talk about. Y’all know this; y’all see it; y’all see the man’s demeanor; y’all saw his behavior; y’all saw the way he conducted himself. Football been stop being important to Aaron Rodgers.”
Sharpe indicated that people get upset with him when he tells the truth, especially about Aaron Rodgers.
“My thing is, I don’t know why anybody would question because y’all see, I call it right down the middle,” said Sharpe. It doesn’t matter if you’re Aaron Rodgers, you’re Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Lamar Jackson or Patrick Mahomes; if I see it, I’m just going to be honest.
“I’ve been telling you guys for the longest, Aaron Rodgers is arrogant, condescending, flippant. He blames everyone; he takes no responsibility for himself. He’s been that. He’s always been that. But he won MVPs, so everybody overlooked it. Now, he can no longer be an MVP; everybody’s saying what I’ve been saying for years.”
Sharpe then connected Rodgers’ current situation to his infamous relationship with his predecessor, Brett Favre.
“One of the things y’all can say, ‘Boy, if you not careful, you’ll become the very thing you despise the most in a person.’ He despised the way Brett Favre treated him,” said Sharpe. “Did he not turn around and become the very thing that he despised the most?… Lord have mercy. See, y’all don’t want to listen to me… Look at how he got out of there. He didn’t want to come to minicamps. He wanted everything to be his way. Isn’t that why they got Brett Favre’s ass up out of there? Now, where did Brett Favre go when he left Green Bay? The New York Jets.”
If Rodgers wants to play for another team in 2025, Sharpe’s advice to any GM is simple.
“I’m drafting a quarterback. What is Aaron Rodgers going to do? At most, he plays a year,” said Sharpe. “And you think I’m going to pass on a quarterback for a year? Are we sure that he can elevate my team? The Jets thought he could; how’d that work out for them? They gave up draft capital, and they’re worst off than they were when they had Zach Wilson, when they had Sam Darnold, and when they had whomever else they had at quarterback.
“Bruh, you’re not getting a Tom Brady ending; you’re not getting a Peyton Manning ending… It’s always been about him. He’s always been condescending. He’s always been flippant. He’s always been arrogant. He’s always been aloof. You overlooked it because he’s winning MVPs. Now, he’s the same player. You don’t change when you lose… Losing doesn’t change who you are; it reveals who you are. That’s what losing does. It reveals (who you are). It don’t build character, it reveals it.
“This is who he’s been.”
[Nightcap]