Aaron Rodgers, fined by the N.F.L. over vaccination rules, says he will stay with the Packers.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a four-time N.F.L. most valuable player, has agreed to remain with the team, concluding his yearlong back-and-forth with the club about his future.
The agreement seemingly resolves a highly publicized rift between Rodgers, 38, and General Manager Brian Gutekunst (and the Packers’ front office), which was rooted in the player’s desire to be more involved in management decisions.
While Rodgers turned in a second consecutive M.V.P. season, the tension between the men amplified scrutiny of Rodgers’s off-field missteps last season, including his admission that he misled reporters about his vaccination status after testing positive for the coronavirus in November and his lashing out at “cancel culture” in an interview with McAfee in the same month.
His public comments there and on Joe Rogan’s podcast, where he said he had petitioned the N.F.L. to reconsider its vaccination policies, made him a lightning rod for the support and derision of politicians, medical experts and people on both sides of a debate over inoculating against Covid-19.
Rodgers tested positive for the coronavirus in November, months after he told reporters that he was “immunized,” against the disease. The N.F.L. fined him $14,650 for violating protocols for unvaccinated players, which included not wearing a mask during his weekly news conferences and attending a Halloween party.
