It had been about two weeks since Aaron Rodgers was involved in the NFL news cycle, so that apparently needed to change early Tuesday morning with a long Instagram post that had plenty of fans expecting a possible retirement.
Conveniently, Rodgers’ regular appearance on on the Pat McAfee Show was set for Tuesday afternoon, so that post was going to get addressed (along with his Panchakarma cleanse). Rodgers didn’t wait much time to brush aside any sort of announcement.
Early in the Tuesday appearance, Rodgers said that he hadn’t made any decision about his future, but McAfee still had questions about that Instagram post. Specifically, he wanted to know about a post that showed Randall Cobb and Davante Adams standing for the anthem with a gap between them. Rodgers typically stands between the two players during the anthem, but he was out that game due to COVID protocols.
The last picture in Aaron Rodgers’ Instagram post is this one. He is in every photo he posted except this one.
He normally stands between Cobb and Adams for the national anthem…
(This looks like the game he missed in KC)
Could mean something or nothing. Time will tell. pic.twitter.com/JFmpiWLcGT— Adriana Torres (@TorresAdrianaTV) February 22, 2022
According to Rodgers, the photo didn’t have a deep meaning beyond just showing gratitude to the two receivers for their friendship and the gesture.
"There's nothing cryptic about gratitude.. I was going thru some pictures from the last year & felt an intense amount of gratitude for the life that I have & the lessons I've learned" ~@AaronRodgers12#PMSLive pic.twitter.com/htggxJBirY
— 🅿️at McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) February 22, 2022
Rodgers said when asked about the photo:
“You’re exactly right. Full transparency when I got that message, I cried. When I got that photo from Randall and Davante, it brought tears to my eyes. That’s my guys standing before the game. Right? Randall’s always on my right. ‘Te’s on my left. And I embrace with both of them after the anthem, and it’s a part of the pregame ritual but also just a statement about friendship and love and the connection that we have collectively and individually in our own friendships. They held space and an open spot for me the game I missed because of my positive COVID test. And that got me, man. And that’s one of my favorite photos from the year. It really is. It just shows the love and how special each of those moments are. So that’s one of my all-time favorite photos and the thought that went into doing that was deeply moving to me. And especially with how crazy that week was, to get that photo after the game from them was — it got me.”
Rodgers missed that Week 9 game against the Chiefs due to a positive COVID test. The Chiefs went on to win, 13-7, but clearly, that gesture resonated with Rodgers.
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