While many people are tired of seeing Aaron Rodgers make headlines, Stephen A. Smith doesn’t believe the NFL minds the publicity.
During his end of season press conference in January, Rodgers urged the Jets to “flush the bullsh*t,” adding, “the bullsh*t that has nothing to do with winning has to get out of the building.” Since that word of advice, Rodgers has continued a feud with Jimmy Kimmel, entertained a VP role on Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s ticket, appeared on several podcasts where he spewed wild conspiracies and spoke about politics, and most recently, the Jets quarterback did a lengthy sit-down with Tucker Carlson.
Four months removed from urging the Jets to “flush the bullsh*t,” it’s hard to even imagine what qualifies as “bullsh*t” according to Rodgers. But through all the controversial headlines Rodgers has made in the last four months, Stephen A. Smith believes the NFL doesn’t mind, which is why the Jets will be under the spotlight with six primetime games in the 2024 season.
“Everybody gets themselves up in a tizzy for every little thing that Aaron Rodgers says and comes out of his mouth. But you never hear the NFL saying anything.” pic.twitter.com/l1PBLM34FG
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 16, 2024
“Everybody gets themselves up in a tizzy for every little thing that Aaron Rodgers says and comes out of his mouth,” Smith said Thursday on ESPN’s First Take. “But you never hear the NFL saying anything, because even those headlines, as unpopular as they may be sometimes because of how off kilter he can be from time to time or come across in some people’s eyes, you know what they say, ‘negatively sells’ or ‘it don’t matter whether it’s positive or negative as long as it’s a headline, it ain’t a bad thing.’
“Aaron Rodgers does that. And so, you’ve got a lot of people, they want to act like they want to veer away from Aaron Rodgers, but they really don’t. Because you know the brother can play…Whether it’s galvanizing in some people’s eyes or polarizing in another, the one thing you’re never about with Aaron Rodgers is indifferent or apathetic. You are compelled, or interested in something he says or does.”
The NFL is capable of absorbing criticism because they know fans will be tuning in on Sundays regardless of negative headlines. For that matter, fans will also be tuning in on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.
Smith is right in that there probably is a level of negativity that sells for the NFL and the Jets, but only to a certain extent. Jets head coach Robert Saleh doesn’t even like taking part in the team’s offense: do you really think he wants these headlines about Rodgers dropped on his desk?
There’s no way the NFL enjoyed Rodgers ticking off Disney by feuding with Jimmy Kimmel. You would hope they don’t share Rodgers’ admiration for Vladimir Putin. And they certainly don’t love Rodgers incessantly ripping their handling of COVID-19.
The NFL isn’t being hurt by Rodgers. And at this point, they can probably take some solace in the fact that Rodgers’ outrageous takes, narratives, and conspiracies are becoming repetitive, which means his outrageousness may have peaked. But there’s definitely a point on inflection where negativity no longer sells. And the NFL would prefer not to test it.
