Aaron Rodgers has earned the right to not attend meaningless practices. At least, that seems to be the opinion of Rodgers, the star quarterback of the New York Jets who decided against attending the team's minicamp last month.
And frankly, Rodgers has a valid point. What more does the guy need to prove? Nothing. That said, perhaps it would've been a nice gesture to show up, get in some reps, and hang out with his teammates.
Either way, Rodgers suggested the decision was no big deal.
"They can arbitrarily put a tag on whatever week of OTAs they want and say, 'This is the minicamp week,' which makes it somehow more mandatory than the other weeks," Rodgers said on the latest episode of Barstool's Pardon My Take podcast, via ESPN. "But it was an OTA schedule. That's how words can be a little deceiving from time to time. They can make a story out of the fact that I missed minicamp, but it was really two OTA days, but [I] came to the first 10."
Rodgers, 40, reportedly was vacationing in Egypt at the time of his "unexcused" absence.
He appeared in just one game last season — the first — before suffering a season-ending Achilles injury. So this is expected to be his first full season as a member of the Jets.
This season, Rodgers is 100 percent and is scheduled to open the season on Monday Night Football, as the Jets pay a visit to the defending NFC champion San Francisco 49ers on Sept. 9.
With Rodgers sidelined, the Jets finished 7-10 last season.
