I gotta get into something that's hitting a little close to home because there seems to be something percolating between one of my colleagues at ESPN one and only, Ryan Clark, or seeing my brother from the Pivot podcast. Obviously an extraordinary NFL analyst for ESPN, a contributor to First Take, Get Up, and other shows on ESPN like NFL Live, Monday Night Football, Monday Night NFL.
Countdown, etc. This is who Ryan Clark is.
He's an incredible asset to the ESPN family. He's a personal friend of mine. Brother got love for him, and he was on First Take last week really going at Aaron Rodgers, even called them a fraud and just clapped at him big time for some of the things that he has said and done, particularly in his less than illustrious time with the New York Jets. Even though over the last couple of weeks so Aaron Rodgers been balling, throwing for six hundred and twenty eight yards for touchdowns,
no picks at all over the last couple of games. Nevertheless, when he spoke and said what he said, Aaron Rodgers, who's a weekly guest on Pat McAfee's show on ESPN, had this to say about Ryan Clark.
Quote, say whatever the expletive.
You want about me, I don't care, but just before you do it, whether you state your name, your alcolades, pronouns, whatever it is, just state your VAX's status so that anything you say afterwards gets you put in the right light.
Just get it out there. That was Aaron Rodgers.
If you know anything about my man, Ryan Clark, he ain't gonna take stuff like that sit down.
That's just not how he rolls to anybody, especially.
I mean, he's a proud black man, so you're a white dude coming at him, He's gonna raise his antennas even more. I'm just telling you who I know. I'm not saying he said anything like that. I just know him, okay, and that we've known each other for years. So needless to say, I was anticipating when I saw that quote from Aaron Rodgers that Ryan Clark would have a response.
I didn't know it was gonna be a four minute.
One on acts, but Ryan Clark that's what he does when he has something to say. So I decided to peel about two minutes from it to hear for y'all is see yourselves he is Ryan Clark, responding to Aaron Rodgers.
My name is Ryan Clark. Played thirteen years in the NFL, been the two Super Bowls. I have as many rings as you do. I was the captain of two separate football teams. I'm also an Emmy winner. I'm also the co host, owner and partner of an Emmy nominated podcast called The Pivot. Now I know something else you were very interested in was my vaccination status. And yes, I'm vaxsed because I have no spleen, I have no gallbladder, because of playing in Denver and being willing to go back,
honestly and play again. Cause I've been in those locker rooms, and I've talked to people that have been in the locker rooms with you. I have the stories, I have all the things that they said that informed my opinion of who you are. And as far as your vaccination status, so you can stop trying to trick people into thinking that we wanna talk about that above the stink of
your film. I've never heard it one more time after your incident, and the only reason we spoke about it then was because based on your vaccination status, it was going to determine how long you were out. And also people didn't care that you weren't vaccinated. They cared that you were slimy about it. They cared that you were deceitful about it, and they care that you had this air of arrogance when answering the questions about it, and you've kind of only been the only person that's talked
about it since. But let me be very very clear, my job is to analyze you. You've decided to analyze me, and in analyzing you, what I know is your QBRS twenty First, also know that you're the quarterback of a four and ten team who has to win the last three games of the season to even be equal to what last year's team was without you.
Now, I get it.
You get on the show and you talk about my broach and you curse and all that's tough talk. I just need you to know though none of that scared me. I'm'a do my job the way I'm supposed to do it. I feel no way about not being able to talk about what the film says because of what my career was.
And if you.
Continue to be arrogant or smug or hypocritical, and it pertains to my job. I'm gonna do it, and I wanna remind you again. I'm Ryan Clark, thirteen years, Emmy winner, host of an Emmy nominated podcast and speaking of that jealousy and guest stuff The Rock, Kevin Hart, Mike Tomlin, Devonte Adams, Joe Burrow, Shaq just to name a few. No money, just relationships, conversations and respects. What I tried to give you and we'll keep it that way.
As long as you want it like that. Appreciate you, Wow Riveting's words.
Why my brother Ryan Clark, I will doubt that by one second.
Couple of things to peel from all of this. Number one.
In the past, on many occasions, I've been accused of having a man crush on Aaron Rodgers. I believe it's a talent at his best in his prime in Roote four le MVP honors. It's one of the greatest quarterbacks we've ever seen in our lives.
He's still that way.
I think that Aaron Rodgers, up until Patrick Mahomes came along, was the greatest talent at the quarterback position I'd ever seen with my two eys, so there's nothing to debate about the greatness of Aaron Rodgers and the fact that he's destined for the Hall of Fame, because when you have his resume, it.
Is what it is.
But Ryan Clark, his words cannot be diluted or minimized because what he pointed out was accurate. Aaron Rodgers QBR is twenty one. The New York Jets are four and ten up until four a couple of weeks ago. Aaron Rodgers looks horrid as a quarterback for the New York Jets. It's been years since he's thrown for over three hundred yards in the game, and the precipitous drop.
Off has been alarming. Over the last two weeks.
Six hundred and twenty eight passing yards for touchdowns, no picks over the last seven games thirteen touchdowns just won an interception of passer.
Rating of one hundred point four. Very impressive.
But the reality is that Aaron Rodgers looked as like a shell of himself, and one has no doubt that that must hurt him to hear from anybody. And what I like about this conversation, And I say like because I'm fascinated by it. See this isn't Aaron Rodgers clapping at a reporter. This is Aaron Rodgers going at a former contemporary, a member of the club, a member to click. You remember, you're a National Football League player, you're a Super Bowl champion.
You apply, you qualify.
So Aaron Rodgers can'd come at Ryan Clark the way he would come at say some they like me who's never played football, or a pluthoro of other pundits and commentators out there who have never played the game or any professional sport for that matter.
That is not Ryan Clark. That is not Ryan Clark. And so when you.
Tried to come at him that way, that was mistake number one.
Mistake number two.
You brought up the vac status because evidently Amon Rodgers feels that anybody who took the vaccine, their opinions are to be dismissed.
Because there's so much that we've.
Learned about the whole COVID vaccine and everything that transpired during that time that conspiracy theorists at the time to Amon Rodgers, the Kyrie Irvings and others ended up looking a lot better later on, and in fairness, a lot better than the rest of.
Us, myself included.
Here's the flip side, Ryan Clark pointed out, it wasn't that you took the vaccine or that you didn't take the vaccine. Is that he used the word slimy. I'm saying you were lying. You said you were immunized. You gave the impression that you were vaccinated, and you didn't man up in state.
No, I didn't take the vaccine.
And guess what, as an NFL player, Aaron Rodgers didn't have to take the vaccine. You would have still been allowed to play. So there was no reason to give the impression that you were vaccinated when in fact you weren't. And you being seen as a stand up guy that called it like you saw it and was honest and forthcoming, then it come across like that when it came to the whole vaccination issue. That's what Ryan Clark was pointing to, and he's right about that.
When it gets to the credentials.
Of Ryan Clarke, let me say this, Ryan Clark is a contributor to the first tape. Ryan Clarke is one of the most brilliant football analysts we have in the business today. His ethics, his professionalism, his cool nucleus of his soul is not to be questioned. Now me, those broaches that he's got on his blaze is the big ARC.
I don't think you need that, bro. Everybody know who you are. See when you large RC, you don't need the RC.
Yes, we know who the hell you are. That's just my personal opinion, but that's his style. He doesn't believe he's better addressed than me. I disagree, but that's a different subject for another day.
In all seriousness, the point is.
The brother has high integrity, high integrity, he's very principled and he ain't backing up from anybody.
And so when Aaron Rodgers wants to come at.
Him, you can't come at him for his credentials as a football player other than he wasn't you. You can't come at him fist integrity or professionalism as somebody in the media because cause he's pointed out the great work that he's been doing, and he's right on.
Off fronts.
When he talks about what he hears in those locker rooms, Well, y'all are the ones that tell the media we don't know y'all are the ones that know, Well, he's one of the y'all's, which means that people in locker rooms have told them those things that he ultimately has disseminated and conveyed about you, Aaron Rodgers, and that is inescapable and the last part about his relationships. That was not a shot at Pat McAfee, nor should it be. Plenty of shows have had and will have guests that they pay.
Pat McAfee has done it. I'm sure something I'll.
Do in the future for people I've paid guests before. You understand, not that I'm talking about anybody that would come on weekly or whatever. Sure I would, okay, along with many, many, many others who would do that. There are paid appearances in our business all the time.
That was not a shot at Pat McAfee. It was a shot at Aaron Rodgers. It was Ryan Clark saying, you got to.
Be paid to go on with your boy. Other people didn't charge me. That's not talking about Pat McAfee. That's talking about Aaron Rodgers. So I think it's something that needed to be said. In the end, it comes back to what I've said about Aaron Rodgers so many times, My man, ball and win, because the reality is you
haven't won as great as you are. You ever won a super Bosin in twenty ten, you haven't been to the Super Bowl since twenty ten, and now your career is going in the wrong direction based on wins and losses. They want you doll it back, roll it back to next year with you and Devontae Adams.
Here all next season and beyond. Do something about it.
Bro show us what you got left going after Ryan Clark.
That ain't gonna do much for you. That ain't gonna do much for you.
Ryan Clark and I have gone at each other in the past. You don't have a platform every day like I do. You don't want to go at Ryan Clark. That is not a winnable situation for you, Aaron Rochester. In fact, it's almost as bad of a situation as it has been you going out on the field on Sundays in the Jets uniform.
You might want to think about that.
Just friendly words of advice, That's all I want to say about that.