Aaron Rodgers doesn’t think he got COVID-19 at Halloween party
He just doesn’t want to acknowledge he might have been wrong
Aaron Rodgers is not interested in discussing his decision to attend a team Halloween party days before he tested positive for COVID-19.
Rodgers tested positive for the virus on Nov. 3, four days after he was at a party with a bunch of his teammates. His (admittedly very cool) John Wick costume did not include a face covering.
During his Wednesday press conference (which was conducted over Zoom because Rodgers doesn’t want to wear a mask at the podium), Green Bay Press-Gazette beat writer Ryan Wood asked Rodgers if he regretted going to the party.
“As you’re out and you’re reflecting, I’m curious if you had any regret for going to the Halloween party unmasked, given your vaccination status, and if you thought that might be where you contracted COVID,” Wood said.
Rodgers glided right past the question about regrets in his curt response.
“I don’t believe that’s where I contracted COVID, no,” he said. “I tested negative that morning and that’s all I’m gonna say about that.”
It’s entirely possible that Rodgers was infected elsewhere but for a guy who claims to be all about science and research, citing a negative test the morning after is an ill-informed explanation for why he couldn’t have gotten sick at the party.
Like any virus, the one that causes COVID-19 has an incubation period, meaning it takes time to replicate in your body. The incubation period for the COVID-19 virus is 2–14 days. Rodgers could have been infected at the party but not had enough of the virus in his body to trigger a positive test.
Maybe Rodgers has a good idea of where he did get infected. Perhaps he knows he was somewhere else where he came into close contact with a person who tested positive. But that’s not what he said during his now-infamous Pat McAfee Show appearance. Rodgers said he was under the impression that he caught the virus from a vaccinated person, but he sounded more like he was making a baseless assumption, not pinpointing a specific vaccinated individual who infected him.
“Look at our squad, I’m the second non-vaxxed player to test positive,” he said. “It’s pretty evident I tested positive being around a vaccinated individual. I mean, that’s the majority of people I spend time with. There’s dozens of people who work at the facility that are vaxxed that tested positive.”
In that same interview, Rodgers said he was taking the pandemic “very seriously” by wearing his mask in public, but as the photos and videos from the Halloween party show, he made exceptions.
“I have taken this very seriously,” he said. “I’m not a COVID denier or any bulls— like that. I just wanted to make the decision that was best for my body. That’s it. I wear my mask when I go out in public. The only time I haven’t worn my mask is when I’m around all vaccinated people [in press conferences].”
Whether or not Rodgers was infected at the Halloween party is irrelevant, but his refusal to acknowledge that it was a risky activity is another example of him setting a bad example for responsible pandemic behavior. There’s a reason why he was fined by the league for attending the party, but it’s clear he doesn’t think he did anything wrong.
The best of SI
Bringing back Justin Verlander will keep the Astros among the American League’s best. … The Warriors’ relentless, title-winning offense is wearing out defenses once again. … Adding Loyola Chicago was a savvy move for the Atlantic 10.
Around the sports world
Audio of Georgia coach Kirby Smart’s passionate halftime speech against Florida has leaked. … Matthew Stafford’s wife apologized for throwing a pretzel at a 49ers fan. … ESPN is reportedly upgrading its gear for Pac-12 broadcasts after fans continually complained of poor picture quality. … Russell Westbrook wore a football jersey in support of a man on death row in Oklahoma but it went right over the head of SportsCenter anchor Hannah Storm.
Tyler Herro tried to throw a half-court alley-oop but it just went through the hoop
CP3 still has it
That’s Southeast Louisiana’s John Allen taking a guy for a ride
Homer college football announcers are a delight, even though they got suspended for this epic rant
It’s the bare minimum but he’s right
The Jets took some Advil for their Mike White Fever
Not sports
A street vendor in Vietnam was summoned by police after a video parodying a government minister’s trip to the London restaurant owned by “Salt Bae.” … The 2021 list of worst passwords includes classics like “12345,” “123456” and “baseball.” … A former defense attorney who once boasted in an ad that he “thinks like a criminal” was pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute over 100 kilograms of marijuana.
This airplane stalled and went into a nosedive when skydivers jumped out but everyone was fine
A good song
Email [email protected] with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.