New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers didn’t actually read the article it refers to, but on Tuesday he criticized teammate Haason Reddick and his former agent.
Rodgers, speaking on ESPN on Tuesday, was asked about a report from The Athletic last month that said the Jets’ locker room was in “complete disarray” before the season based, in part, on how they handled it.
Rodgers speculated that quote came from Haason Reddick’s camp.
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“I would say the culture is pretty much the opposite of what the article says,” Rodgers said. “I didn’t read the article, but just reading the headline it sounds like it was written by Haason Reddick’s agent, or his former agent, I guess, possibly, because of the way they’re trying to disparage our great organization.”
Reddick was acquired by the Jets in a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles, though he has yet to play with the team amid a contract dispute with the Jets, which is still ongoing heading into Week 4 of the season.
Rodgers returned to the field this fall after the Achilles injury he suffered just four plays into his debut with the team last season. Rodgers skipped mandatory minicamp to travel to Egypt, for which the Jets fined him. He attributed that to a scheduling issue.
That trip was part of anonymity Quote used by The Athletic for his preseason story on all teams in the league, not just the Jets.
“There’s complete chaos there. Look at how they’ve handled Aaron Rodgers,” the quote read. “Has any player had more power than him? He skipped minicamp. They haven’t been able to make him a team player. The atmosphere inside the building is terrible.”
While Rodgers said he didn’t actually read the story, and it’s unclear if the quote came from Reddick’s camp, publicly attacking a current teammate in that manner is a bit unusual.
Rodgers completed 27 of 35 passes for 281 yards and threw two touchdowns in a 24-3 win over the New England Patriots last week, improving to 2-1 on the season. He threw for 624 yards and five touchdowns and completed just over 67 percent of his passes in three games.
Rodgers and the Jets will host the Denver Broncos on Sunday.