Stephen A. Smith praises Pat McAfee’s Aaron Rodgers interviews

New York Jets fans are tired of seeing Aaron Rodgers yuk it up with Pat McAfee every Tuesday, but Stephen A. Smith isn’t.

Rodgers hasn’t been productive on the football field this season, but he continues to be productive off of it by SERVING the media with headline-worthy clips and quotes. The 41-year-old quarterback exemplified that Sunday afternoon by orchestrating the Jets meltdown against the Seattle Seahawks while making sure to remind reporters that his teammates deserve their share of the blame. Monday morning on First Take, Smith said he was “embarrassed” for the season Rodgers is having with the Jets.

“He has been bad, he has not been good.” – Stephen A. Smith on Aaron Rodgers pic.twitter.com/bG5hqqux38

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 2, 2024

“You’re in the media capital of the world. Every time he opens his mouth this year, he’s given justification for the level of skepticism Green Bay threw out there about him in terms of his lack of leadership. And that’s really, really glaring,” Smith said.

“To go in the press conference and say, ‘It’s not just about me,’ well who the hell doesn’t know it’s about the other guys?” he continued. “Everybody knows that. But it starts and stops with you. Because you’re the leader and in the end, he hasn’t led. It’s one of the most catastrophic things I think we have seen in football. Because to be that great as a talent, to have fallen off that much and for the team to follow you falling off that much, but you still doing…listen, I’m not gonna knock Pat McAfee, they doing a great job with their show and having him on the show, you’re damn right we’d do it too. But in the end, it’s about him. And there just seems to be no shame in his game.”

He stopped short of doing so, but it sounded like Smith was about to criticize Rodgers for continuing his weekly appearances on The Pat McAfee Show amid the disastrous season he’s having with the Jets. Earlier this season, Chris Russo ranted about Rodgers appearing on McAfee with the Jets faltering. Smith, however, made it clear he wasn’t going to criticize McAfee for having Rodgers on his show every Tuesday. If anything, he sounded more jealous that McAfee gets to interview Rodgers every Tuesday.

It’s not surprising to hear Smith would be willing to let Rodgers make headlines on his show. Most sports entertainers would welcome the attention. But the backlash and criticism McAfee faces for his weekly spots with Rodgers have never been about his willingness to platform one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history. It’s about McAfee’s willingness to sit back and encourage Rodgers when he starts going off the rails.

[First Take]