The never-ending battle between Aaron Rodgers and the media opened up for further debate this offseason when ESPN's Adam Schefter had a text exchange between him and the 39-year-old quarterback leaked.
Rodgers, one of the hottest names this NFL offseason, had reporters itching for any developments that could indicate his soon-to-be landing spot, with many leaning toward the New York Jets.
This led Schefter to do his part as a league insider, trying to pry whatever information he could -- an effort that came up empty. Rodgers not only refused to divulge any details regarding potentially joining the Jets. He also requested that Schefter not reach out to him again. Rodgers expressed confusion over how Schefter got his phone number to begin with.
Schefter countered with a response of his own, offering his perspective and detailing how the text exchange went down.
"I've had his number for a while. I never once used it," Schefter said, according to Pro Football Talk. "Trey Wingo reported (last Monday) he was 'hearing' that Rodgers to the Jets was done. The day he did it, ESPN was going live from 3 to 5 on free agency. Everyone was saying Aaron Rodgers to the Jets is done. We're on air for two hours. I call the Jets, I call the Pack, I call Rodgers' advisers. No one's saying anything.
"At 3:35, I text (Rodgers). I say, basically, 'Have you informed the Jets that you'd like to play there? I wanted to open it up to you.' He didn't respond for maybe 10 minutes. So then I called the number, got sent to voice mail. Then he texts me, 'Lose my number. Good try tho.' "
So far, Rodgers has only been open during his numerous appearances on "The Pat McAfee Show," which hasn't resulted in many developments beyond his four-day darkness retreat back in February.
If Rodgers does sport a new uniform next season, it'll close the door of an 18-year run in Green Bay.
"He's the one who says the media's getting it wrong," Schefter said. "I wanted to go to the source and get it right. That's all. I was just trying to do my job."
