Aaron Rodgers’ Most Controversial Moments Through the Years

Aaron Rodgers is one of the best-ever quarterbacks to play in the NFL, but it’s often his antics off the field that get the most people talking.

Rodgers — who was the Green Bay Packers superstar quarterback for 18 seasons before joining the New York Jets in April 2023 — came under fire in November 2021 when it was revealed he misled people about his COVID-19 vaccination status when he told reporters that he was “immunized” when he hadn’t actually been vaccinated.

The athlete defended his use of the phrase, calling it “the truth.”

“Had there been a follow-up to my statement that I’d been immunized, I would have responded with this: I would have said, ‘Look, I’m not some sort of anti-vax-flat-Earther. I’m somebody who’s a critical thinker,’” Rodgers later explained on the Pat McAfee Show. “I march to the beat of my own drum. I believe strongly in bodily autonomy, [in the] ability to make choices for your body, not to have to acquiesce to some woke culture or crazed group of individuals who say you have to do something.”

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Keep scrolling for all of Rodgers’ controversies through the years:

Family Feud

While a contestant on The Bachelorette in 2016, Aaron’s brother Jordan Rodgers told future wife JoJo Fletcher that he and Aaron “don’t really have that much of a relationship.”

“It’s just kind of the way he’s chosen to do life and I’ve chosen to stay close with my family and my parents and my brother,” Jordan explained at the time. “Yeah, it’s not ideal and I love him and I can’t imagine what it’s like to be in his shoes and have the pressure he has, the demands from people that he has. Don’t have hard feelings against him, it’s just how things go right now.”

The brothers’ estrangement only grew worse as the years went on, particularly after both Jordan and other brother Luke Rodgers called out Aaron for allegedly not being there for their family amid the California wildfires in 2018. (Aaron also missed Jordan’s wedding in 2022.)

In Aaron’s 2024 Netflix docuseries, Aaron Rodgers: Enigma, he reflected on the strain Jordan’s Bachelorette stint put on their relationship.

“It wasn’t like I was super duper close with everybody in the family. I was close with my little brother [Jordan],” Aaron said. “But in actuality, it goes back to stuff from high school that kind of made me feel distant. Stuff in college, stuff post-college. I was quiet about it. I thought the best way to do it was just don’t talk about it publicly.”

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He recalled that Jordan — and the show producers — did the opposite of that by making it clear during hometowns that Aaron was absent. “And what do they do? They go on a bulls— show and leave two empty chairs,” Aaron said. “They all agreed this was a good thing to do, to leave two empty chairs at a stupid dating show that my brother just went on to get famous — his words, not mine. That he ended up winning. But a dinner that was during the season, I was never asked to go to. Not that I would’ve gone.”

Aaron also alleged in the December 2024 doc that he “found a lot of resistance” from his family when he stopped practicing the same Christian religion he was taught as a child. Instead, the athlete turned to “other religions and plant medicine” which fueled his “alternative lifestyle.” The religious shift “definitely changed the dynamics of my family,” he added.

COVID-19 Vaccine Drama

Aaron — who contracted COVID-19 in November 2021 — was forced to pay $14,650 for breaking NFL COVID-19 safety protocols as an unvaccinated player. His violations included attending a party with other teammates and speaking to reporters without a mask on. The Packers were fined $300,000 for not disciplining him or reporting his violations.

Ayahuasca Journey

In August 2022, Aaron claimed on “The Aubrey Marcus Podcast” that doing ayahuasca helped him win two back-to-back MVP awards in 2020 and 2021.

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence. I really don’t. I don’t really believe in coincidences at this point,” he said. “It’s the universe bringing things to happen when they’re supposed to happen and there’s signs and synchronicities all around us at all times if we’re awake enough to see them and to take them in and to listen to our intuition when it’s speaking to us or, you know, pounding us in the head saying, ‘Hey dummy, this is what you’re supposed to be doing.’”

The 9/11 Question

In November 2022, Packers backup QB DeShone Kizer claimed on “The Breneman Show” podcast that Aaron once encouraged him to question whether the September 11 attacks happened.

“He shut the door, and the first thing that comes out of Aaron Rodgers’ mouth was ‘Do you believe in 9/11?’” Kizer recalled, noting that Aaron wanted him to “‘read up on that’” and to “go back and look into some of the conspiracies around it.”

The Constant Indecision

During multiple offseasons, Aaron kept fans — and the Green Bay Packers — waiting for long periods of time while he publicly hinted at a possible desire to be traded or retire altogether. After ultimately sticking with the Packers every time, in 2023 he and the team finally pulled the trigger when Aaron was traded to the Jets.

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Golf Cheating Claims

Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen called out Aaron for allegedly cheating at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament in February 2023.

“I love Aaron, but he did [cheat],” Allen said on Barstool Sports’ “Pardon My Take” podcast in August 2023. Allen accused Aaron of “sandbagging,” meaning he downplayed how good he was at golf before the match in order to be afforded extra strokes during the match.

“He may have gotten seven or eight strokes too many at Pebble Beach, or nine,” Allen claimed “other sources” said. Then he joked, “I think Aaron Rodgers should be in jail.”

Jimmy Kimmel Beef

Jimmy Kimmel found himself in a years-long feud with Aaron after he poked fun at the NFL star’s controversial COVID-19 vaccine beliefs in 2021. “Nothing says I heal myself with crystals like this haircut — that little knot on top,” Kimmel said in a November 2021 Jimmy Kimmel Live! monologue before flashing to a selfie of Rodgers in a man bun. “Aaron is a Karen, that’s the fact of the matter.”

In March 2023, Aaron revealed on The Pat McAfee Show that he was interested in seeing the list of names that were connected to the late convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. Kimmel shared snippets of Aaron’s interview on his show and implied that he might have a potential head injury.

Aaron didn’t respond at the time, but he stoked the fire in January 2024 when he insinuated that Kimmel should be worried about the names on Epstein’s list coming out — implying that the comedian had some connection to the accused sex offender. “I’ll tell you what, if that list comes out, I will definitely be popping some sort of bottle,” Aaron said on The Pat McAfee Show.

Kimmel slammed Aaron via X for his remarks, denying any connection to Epstein. “Dear A——-: for the record, I’ve not met, flown with, visited, or had any contact whatsoever with Epstein, nor will you find my name on any ‘list’ other than the clearly-phony nonsense that soft-brained wackos like yourself can’t seem to distinguish from reality,” Kimmel wrote in January 2024. “Your reckless words put my family in danger. Keep it up and we will debate the facts further in court. @AaronRodgers12.”

After Kimmel went off on Aaron’s reckless accusations and actions on his talk show, the quarterback responded to the backlash. “I wish him the best. I don’t give a s— what he says about me,” Aaron said on a January 2024 episode of The Pat McAfee Show. “As long as he understands what I actually said, that I’m not accusing him of being on a list. I’m all for moving forward.”

The Infamous Jets Coach Push

Aaron raised eyebrows in September 2024 when he was caught pushing Jets coach Robert Saleh away when he came in for a hug during their game against the New England Patriots. The awkward moment caused some viewers to think there was tension between the player and coach.

“He’s not a big hugger usually,” Aaron said of Saleh in his postgame press conference, explaining, “So I didn’t know he was going for the hug. He likes to do the two-hand chest push.” He insisted the moment “wasn’t awkward at all,” which Saleh echoed himself.

The following month, amid the Jets disappointing start to the season, Saleh was fired. Rumors began to swirl that Aaron’s relationship with Saleh played into the franchise’s choice to let him go, which he denied. “As far as any of the ridiculous allegations out there, I’m not going to spend more than one sentence in response to it,” Aaron said during an October 2024 appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. “I resent any of those accusations because they’re patently false.”

Secret Wedding

During his first day at the Pittsburgh Steelers’ training camp in June 2025, Rodgers shared that he had gotten married “a couple months” earlier. The quarterback did not reveal the identity of his spouse. However, he revealed in December 2024 that he was dating a woman named Brittani.