Aaron Rodgers takes the NFL MVP award very seriously, and he also has been known to hold a grudge.
So, his comments Wednesday regarding some pretty viral criticism lobbed his way this week shouldn't come as much surprise at all.
The Green Bay Packers quarterback is the presumed frontrunner to win his fourth MVP award upon season's end, but at least one member of the media went public about his intentions to vote for someone other than Rodgers. Hub Arkush, a veteran Chicago media member, hammered Rodgers on Tuesday, saying he wouldn't vote for Rodgers for MVP because he believes Rodgers is a jerk. Arkush called him a "bad guy" while also criticizing Rodgers for his vaccination status and past comments about COVID-19 and the vaccines.
Rodgers got his first shot to respond Wednesday and unloaded.
"I think he's a bum. I think he's an absolute bum," Rodgers said on a video call with the media. "He doesn't know me. I don't know who he is. No one knew who he was probably until yesterday's comments. I listened to the comments, but to say he had his mind made up in the summertime in the offseason that I had zero chance of winning the MVP, in my opinion, should exclude future votes. His problem isn't with me being a bad guy or the biggest jerk in the league because he doesn't know me. He doesn't know me. I've never met him. I've never had lunch with him. I've never had an interview with him.
"His problem is I'm not vaccinated, so if he wants to go on a crusade and collude and come up with an extra letter to put on the award just for this season and make it the most valuable vaccinated player, then he should do that, but he's a bum. I'm not gonna waste any time worrying about that stuff. He has no idea who I am and he's never talked to me in his life. It's unfortunate those sentiments -- it's surprising that he would even say that, to be honest -- but I knew this was possible."
Before Rodgers spoke Wednesday, Arkush backtracked.
"I made a big mistake (Tuesday night)" he said Wednesday on 670 The Score, as transcribed by Pro Football Talk. "It's on me. I screwed up. … All you can do is own it, and I own it."
Rodgers, who won MVP last season, is the betting favorite to win again as the NFL enters its final week of the regular season. The Packers quarterback, despite missing a week midway through the season after testing positive for COVID-19, has completed 69% of his passes, throwing for nearly 4,000 yards with 35 touchdowns and just four interceptions. He's been sensational since Thanksgiving, throwing 18 touchdowns and not a single interception in the last six games, a stretch in which the Packers went 5-1. Green Bay is 13-3 and already has locked up the NFC's top seed and a first-round playoff bye.
