More than a decade has passed since Shannon Sharpe initially questioned whether Aaron Rodgers is a good teammate. And Sharpe is now waiting for apologies.
After imploring the New York Jets to eliminate distractions from the organization, Rodgers has repeatedly proved to be a giant distraction himself. In the months since making that declaration, Rodgers has feuded with Jimmy Kimmel, mulled an offer to be Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s running mate, and made several polarizing podcast appearances. And this week, he was a no-show at their mandatory minicamp.
Sharpe discussed the quarterback’s mysterious absence on the latest episode of Nightcap. There, the longtime Aaron Rodgers critic basically said, ‘I told you so.’
“I’ve been trying to tell y’all for a decade,” Sharpe ranted. “Unc can read a locker room. And I remember when I went to do an interview, and I talked to the receiver. And I ain’t gonna say no names, but I know what was told to old Shay. And when I went back and said it on TV, everybody tried to shut me down. Nah bro, nah bro.
“I told y’all he’s always been about Aaron Rodgers. He ain’t never been about the team,” Sharpe continued. “I want y’all to apologize…He never bought in. He’s selfish. He’s condescending, aloof, there are a lot of other things I could say, but y’all know I was right. I’ve just been telling y’all this for the longest.”
Sharpe’s negative assessment of Rodgers was heightened in recent years, particularly after the quarterback deceived the media about his vaccine status. But as Sharpe noted, his criticisms of Rodgers go back more than 11 years. In 2012, Sharpe went on CBS’ The NFL Today and said, “He strikes me as a guy that it’s always someone else’s fault other than his own. I’m not so sure, I’m not so sure, that deep down inside, how well his receiving corps really likes Aaron Rodgers.”
Rodgers’ current receiving corps has continued to say the right things about their quarterback. But that doesn’t change the fact that he’s undoubtedly been a distraction for the entire organization since being dealt to New York. A distraction that Sharpe sniffed out years before Rodgers was deemed to be such a polarizing figure.
“I don’t really do a whole lot of talking,” Sharpe surprisingly stated. “I don’t brag about ‘I got these connects.’ All I know, I’m like EF Hutton, when I talk, you all better listen. I ain’t gonna impute anybody’s name. I’m not gonna say anything and I won’t be talking about my sources. I just be talking matter of factly.”
[Nightcap]
