Green Bay Packer’s quarterback Aaron Rodgers, one of the NFL’s most high-profile players, revealed that he was unvaccinated against COVID-19 on Friday in a media appearance filled with recriminations, conjecture, and misinformation.
Rodgers tested positive for the virus earlier this week. The NFL ruled that he couldn’t return to the field for at least 10 days, an indication that he is not inoculated, despite his August claim to the contrary. Vaccinated NFL players that experience a breakthrough infection can return on a shorter timeline.
Rodgers invoked a menagerie of right-wing buzzwords to explain his prolonged absence from his team.
“I realize I’m in the crosshairs of the woke mob right now,” Rodgers said. “So, before my final nail gets put in my cancel culture casket, I think I would like to set the record straight on so many of the blatant lies that are out there about myself.”
He added the media was on a “witch hunt” to find out which players were vaccinated.
Rodgers made his remarks on The Pat McAfee Show, which is hosted by a former NFL player who did little to pushback against the reigning MVP’s specious talking points.
“If the vaccine is so great, how come people are still getting Covid and spreading Covid and unfortunately dying from Covid?” Rodgers asked.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the unvaccinated are 4.5 times more likely than vaccinated individuals to become infected with COVID-19, 10 times more likely to be hospitalized, and 11 times more likely to die.
While vaccinated individuals can still transmit COVID-19, they are less likely to do so than the unvaccinated. Over 750,000 Americans have died of the virus, including nearly 1,200 people on Thursday.
“The vaccines do offer some protection for sure but there is a lot we don’t know about them. … There is a lot to natural immunity. … If you have gotten Covid and recovered from it, that’s the best boost to immunity you can have,” Rodgers claimed.
Last week, the CDC released a study that indicated that vaccination provides a “higher, more robust, and more consistent level of immunity to protect people from COVID-19 than infection alone.”
Rodgers claimed that he has an “allergy to an ingredient that’s in the mRNA vaccines” that are made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
NBC News explains:
The quarterback didn’t immediately detail the allergy that blocks him from both the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccines. He also said he feared possible adverse effects from the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The number of people who have had anaphylactic reactions to Covid vaccines is very small, about 2 to 5 cases per million doses, said Dr. Niraj Patel of Atlanta, chair of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology’s Covid-19 Vaccine Task Force.
“Putting this into perspective, you’re as likely to get struck by lightning as you are to have an allergic reaction to a Covid vaccine,” he said.
Rodgers also attempted to explain away his August claim that he was immunized, which was untrue.
“Had there been a follow-up to my statement that I had been immunized, I would have responded with this: I would have said, ‘Look, I’m not some sort of anti-vax flat-Earther. I am somebody who is a critical thinker.’ You guys know me, I march to the beat of my own drum. I believe strongly in bodily autonomy and the ability to make choices for your body.”
Earlier this week, Rodgers revealed that he took an “alternative therapy” that he thought qualified him as immunized. He did not provide details.
On Friday, Rodgers also revealed that he had consulted podcaster Joe Rogan for medical advice.
“I’ve been doing a lot of the stuff that he recommended, in his podcasts and on the phone to me,” Rodgers said. “I’ve been taking monoclonal antibodies, ivermectin, zinc, vitamin C, D, and HCQ [hydroxychloroquine]… And I feel pretty incredible.”
Business Insider adds:
Despite being unvaccinated, Rodgers addressed the media unmasked, unvaccinated, and indoors throughout the season until it came out that he had tested positive for COVID-19. Rodgers’ press conferences could result in fines from the league for breaking COVID protocols, as unvaccinated players are required to be masked at all times while indoors.
An NFL spokesperson told CNN in a statement, “The primary responsibility for enforcement of the Covid Protocols within Club facilities rests with each Club. Failure to properly enforce the protocols has resulted in discipline being assessed against individual Clubs in the past. The league is aware of the current situation in Green Bay and will be reviewing with the Packers.”