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Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
He’s been automatically ruled out for Sunday’s game due to being unvaccinated, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo.
NFL rules require players to miss a minimum of 10 days — assuming he has no symptoms — if they test positive and are unvaccinated, according to Rapoport.
As Adam Schefter of ESPN notes, the earliest Rodgers could return is Nov. 13. That could put his status for Week 10 against the Seattle Seahawks in jeopardy.
As a result of Rodgers’ absence, the Packers will start Jordan Love at quarterback. It will be the first start of Love’s career after he was selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Packers practice squad quarterback Kurt Benkert also recently tested positive for COVID-19 earlier in the week.
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Rodgers Back in August: ‘I’ve Been Immunized’
Rodgers had previously stated that he’s “immunized” back on Aug. 26. Here’s his exact quote, via Rob Demovsky of ESPN:
“Yeah I’ve been immunized.” he said. “There’s guys on the team that haven’t been vaccinated and it’s personal decision, not going to judge those guys.”
Rodgers also made further comments on the matter of being vaccinated versus unvaccinated.
“You know, there’s a lot of conversation around it, around the league, and a lot of guys who have made statements and not made statements, owners who have made statements,” Rodgers said. “There’s guys on the team that haven’t been vaccinated. I think it’s a personal decision. I’m not going to judge those guys. There are guys that’ve been vaccinated that have contracted COVID. It’s an interesting issue that I think we’re going to see played out the entire season.”
“I think I like to learn about everything that I’m doing, and there was a lot of research that even went into that,” Rodgers continued. “But like I said, there’s been people that have tested positive, and I think it’s only vaccinated people here. It’s going to be interesting to see how things work moving forward. Obviously there could be some issues with vaccinated people only testing every couple weeks and then non-vaccinated testing every day.”
Packers Release LB Jaylon Smith
Just weeks after signing Jaylon Smith, the Packers have released the former Pro Bowl linebacker.
On a day when everyone was paying attention to potential trade deadline deals, the Packers parted ways with the sixth-year linebacker on Tuesday, November 2.
It is the second time since October that Smith has been cut. The 26-year-old linebacker was cut by the Dallas Cowboys on Oct. 5 after he was passed on the depth chart by Micah Parsons and Keanu Neal.
Smith had been a healthy scratch for the Packers’ Week 8 game versus the Arizona Cardinals.
Since signing with the Packers on Oct. 7, Smith appeared in just two games and played a total of 27 snaps — 17 snaps against the Chicago Bears in Week 6 and 10 against the Washington Football Team in Week 7 — with just one tackle.
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