Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers might not be satisfied with just a two-week guest-hosting experience on “Jeopardy!” In fact, the three-time MVP is legitimately interested in becoming the full-time host and successor to Alex Trebek, who hosted the show for 37 seasons.
Rodgers told “The Pat McAfee Show” on Monday that he would “love to be the host” of the iconic game show. And he wasn’t just kidding around.
Rodgers is working under the assumption that he could continue to be an NFL quarterback while hosting the show.
Here’s what Rodgers said to Claire McNear of The Ringer: “I don’t think I’d need to give up football to do it. They film 46 days a year. I worked 187 this year in Green Bay. That gives me, eh—[pauses]—178 days to do Jeopardy! So I feel like I could fit 46 into that 178 and make it work. It would be a dream job for sure, and I’m not shy at all about saying I want the job. That’s how I went into it. I want an opportunity to be in the mix.”
Rodgers, who turns 38 in December, is one of several guest hosts picked by the show to keep the games going after Trebek’s passing last November. His 10-episode run started Monday and lasts two weeks.
Rodgers told Rob Demovsky of ESPN that studied for “hours and hours” and took “pages and pages” of notes in preparation for the hosting gig. He both wanted to honor Trebek’s legacy and impress the decision-makers at “Jeopardy!” during the filming, which was completed in February.
A long-time fan of the show, winner of “Celebrity Jeopardy!” in 2015 and lover of trivia, Rodgers has called being the host a “dream job.”
The California native has been the Packers quarterback since 2005, and he’s under contract in Green Bay for three more seasons.
Here’s why Rodgers thinks he’d be a good pick to replace Trebek as the full-time host, per McNeal: “I respect the show and appreciate the history of it, and also there’s my background of stepping in for a legend and their footsteps. I feel like all that combined makes me a pretty good candidate.”
Super Bowl-winning quarterback and game-show host? Rodgers might make it possible soon.
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