Draft day didn't go the way Aaron Rodgers thought it would.
Rodgers was expected to be a top pick for several weeks leading up to the draft, and it looked like the Cal product was going to be selected first by his hometown team, the San Francisco 49ers.
Instead, Rodgers took a tumble on draft day and fell to 23rd overall, where he was selected by the Green Bay Packers.
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In an interview with “FOX & Friends” host Brian Kilmeade on the “Brian Kilmeade Show,” Ian O'Connor discussed this pivotal moment in Rodgers' career, which he documented in his new biography, “Out of the Darkness: The Mystery of Aaron Rodgers.”
“It was humiliating. And obviously, it was broadcast on national television. It was the first NFL Draft, it was a reality show.”
His reception to the Packers wasn't ideal either. Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre was the starter at the time and it was no secret that he had no intention of mentoring the rookie.
“I think as a starter, my job is hard enough to win games and be a leader,” Favre said in a famous interview in 2015. “You're not a babysitter.”
“Nowhere does it say you have to take that kid under your wing and teach him the rules of the game. You don't have to do anything but win football games. To whoever your starting quarterback is, whether or not you take a kid under your wing really doesn't mean anything.”
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Aaron Rodgers, number 8 of the New York Jets, looks on during an NFL football game against the Washington Commanders at MetLife Stadium on August 10, 2024, in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Perry Knotts/Getty Images)
Rodgers wasn't given the starting job until his fourth season with the team, and then the 10-time Pro Bowler found himself in the same position as his predecessor.
After winning the MVP in the 2020 season, the Packers selected quarterback Jordan Love from Utah.
O'Connor talked about the stark differences between the way Rodgers treated Love and the way he was treated by Favre.
“(Rodgers) treated him a lot better than Brett Favre treated him, that's for sure. And I think Jordan Love really appreciated that, and Aaron understood what it felt like to be in that position.”
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Aaron Rodgers, #12, and Jordan Love, #10, of the Green Bay Packers enter the field before a game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium on December 25, 2022, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Megan Briggs/Getty Images)
“I was determined not to do the same thing to Jordan.”
As for Rodgers and Favre, their relationship is in a better place now than ever, O'Connor said.
“As far as the relationship with (Rodgers and Favre), it's better now, much better than when they were together as teammates, because they both went through the experience of being kicked out of Green Bay. And the pain that that entailed and how it felt.”
After winning a Super Bowl with the Packers and four MVPs with Green Bay, the Packers were ready to move on from Rodgers.
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Aaron Rodgers, #12 of the Green Bay Packers, shares a moment with former quarterback Brett Favre during a memorial service for the late Bart Starr at halftime of the game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on September 15, 2019, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
Before last season, the Packers traded Rodgers to the New York Jets so Jordan Love could ascend to the starting position.
Rodgers played four snaps for the Jets before tearing his Achilles tendon in the season opener.
The Packers will open the 2024 season against the Philadelphia Eagles in Brazil on Sept. 6, while Rodgers' Jets will travel west to San Francisco to play the 49ers on Sept. 9 to kick off their season.
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