‘Classic disinformation’: NFL star Rodgers responds to ‘Covid toe’ rumors
Underfire NFL superstar Aaron Rodgers attempted to show reporters that he doesn't have 'Covid toe' by whipping out his foot in front of them.
The Green Bay Packers quarterback was reported by the Wall Street Journal as having suffered a bizarre side effect from Covid after being diagnosed with the disease earlier in October.
According to the outlet, the 37-year-old, who courted controversy with his comments on a refusal to take the vaccine, is getting to grips with discoloration and lesions on his foot that have been giving him immense toe pain.
Furthermore, Rodgers made a reference to having 'Covid toe' on an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show where his remarks have previously landed him in hot water with "the woke mob" and seen him criticized by the White House for "misinformation".
Aaron Rodgers puts his foot on camera during a press conference to prove that he doesn’t have “COVID Toe” as the mainstream media was reporting pic.twitter.com/F8tHKvfXer
— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) November 24, 2021
“I have a fractured toe.” pic.twitter.com/DFJJ1OF7LC
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) November 24, 2021
In a bid to shut down questioning media during a video press conference, however, Rodgers protested that he is merely dealing with a fractured digit and pulled his foot up to show a lack of bruising or scabs.
"I can't believe I have to again come on here and talk about my medical information. But yeah, I have a fractured toe," said the reigning NFL MVP.
"I've never heard of 'Covid toe' before. I have no lesions on my feet.
"That's just a classic case of disinformation. It's surprising coming from what used to be a reputable journalistic institution, but that's the world we live in these days," he added.
Poking fun at himself, Rodgers, who recently apologized for his "polarizing" opinion on the vaccine, changed his Twitter profile picture to one of him holding his foot up to the camera.
.@AaronRodgers12 updates his Twitter photos 😂 pic.twitter.com/A4p1OXjCVn
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) November 24, 2021
Despite his injury, Rodgers featured for the Packers in their 34-31 defeat to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
This was their second loss in three outings, after Rodgers was forced to miss a meeting with the Kansas City Chiefs that finished 13-7 to last season's Super Bowl finalists.
Now 8-3, the Pack still top the NFC North and face the 7-3 LA Rams at home in one of the best match-ups on Thanksgiving weekend.
Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur has said that Rodgers will be evaluated day-to-day as to whether he can be involved, with next week a bye before a showdown with bitter rivals the Chicago Bears.
When #Packers QB Aaron Rodgers was asked postgame about his “I still own you!” comments to the #Bears crowd, he said: “Sometimes you black out on the field... I looked up in the stands and all I saw was a woman giving me the double bird"Well - there were many of them. pic.twitter.com/hFMD7cvhwO
— Kyle Malzhan (@KyleMalzhan) October 18, 2021
"Didn't think it was what it was until I got to the facility on Saturday before the game and got X-rayed when I got cleared," Rodgers said.
"It's just about pain management. There's surgical options as well that wouldn't involve missing time. I'll definitely look into all options during the bye week," he vowed.
Telling their fans that he owned them the last time they played, in a 24-14 away win at their Soldier Field, Rodgers will no doubt be keen to get fit to take on the Bears.
