Pat McAfee Welcomes Aaron Rodgers Back as Surprise Guest on Show — Shoots Down Rumors He Kicked Him Off Due to Controversy

Just one day after announcing Aaron Rodgers would no longer appear on his show for the rest of the NFL season, Pat McAfee surprised his audience by bringing him back.

Before Thursday, Rodgers last appeared on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday. The segment was met with national backlash after the New York Jets quarterback addressed the drama with talk show host Jimmy Kimmel. He then ranted about the Covid-19 vaccine.

On Wednesday, McAfee confirmed that Rodgers’ weekly appearances — dubbed “Aaron Rodgers Tuesday” — had come to an end. It was unclear if the move was due to the controversy or the simple fact that Rodgers’ season was officially over.

That answer was provided Thursday when Rodgers returned. This time, however, he was only there to talk about the head coach Bill Belichick leaving the New England Patriots. During the conversation, which only lasted around five minutes, Rodgers spoke fondly of the coach and shared some of his favorite memories.

When the call ended, McAfee addressed the elephant in the room.

“So yesterday, I’m just getting absolutely crushed,” McAfee said, “I’m like, ‘How do I explain to all these humans that Aaron Rodgers has an offseason, too, that he enjoys doing?’ And this is how this has always gone with Aaron Rodgers Tuesdays. When his football is over, normally, he’s got — now last year was a little different because of the whole situation that was kinda taking place. That was wild. We were getting absolutely killed. They were like, ‘You turned your back on Aaron Rodgers!'”

“Do you know how many things I’ve been through with Aaron Rodgers just in our short relationship? Yeah, I was not pumped to be in the middle of any of that. We all had friends that put us in situations where we’re like, ‘Did we have to?’ I’ve been that guy.”

As McAfee noted, Rodgers stops coming on the show when his season ends. In 2020 and 2021, Rodgers appeared all the way up until the Green Bay Packers — his team at the time — were eliminated from the playoffs. In 2022, the Packers didn’t make the playoffs but Rodgers continued to do the show until after the Super Bowl. Last season was an exception because, as McAfee pointed out, there was a lot of speculation about Rodgers’ future in the sport.

This season, the Jets did not make the playoffs; so Rodgers likely won’t be seen again until the start of the 2024 season. Contrary to some Wednesday reports, McAfee did not pull the plug on the Rodgers segment in response to the controversy.

Watch above via ESPN.