No one expected Aaron Rodgers to fire off on Dr. Anthony Fauci when he showed up at the Pat McAfee Show this week. But as Rodgers’ heated comments made headlines, his team found itself in the crosshairs, being asked about their stance on the matter. New head coach Mike McCarthy faced a similar question and decided to take the high road.

“These are grown men,” McCarthy said, via ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. “They all have different opinions. There’s no question about that. At the end of the day, my job is to keep it about football.”

Mike McCarthy’s stance mirrors the overall team sentiment as well. Shortly after Rodgers’ comments on the show, the Steelers also issued a statement of their own, highlighting the freedom of expression.

“Discussions around culture and politics can bring different perspectives, and our players are entitled to their own personal views,” Burt Lauten, Steelers’ Senior Director of Communications, stated. “With respect to that, I am certain there are a variety of opinions on many topics within our locker room.”

On the show, Rodgers was asked how he views this 2026 season compared to the seasons he’s played before. Instead of talking about football, Rodgers took this moment to, first, plead the Fifth, and then take direct shots at Dr. Fauci.

“I’m gonna plead the fifth like that absolute coward Tony Fauci,” Rodgers started. “Absolute coward. Are you kidding me? You got a pardon, and you’re afraid you pleaded over a hundred times at the White House. What are you scared of, Tony? I thought you were the science. I thought you were, ‘I am science,’ and you get up there, and you can’t answer a question?

Dr. Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), served as the chief medical advisor to the President from 2021-22. Most recently, Fauci appeared before a Senate committee to field questions about the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, and pleaded the Fifth more than 100 times. Dr. Fauci already had a federal pardon from former President Joe Biden, but that wouldn’t cover statements Dr. Fauci makes after the pardon. For Rodgers, that hit at a personal level because of the criticism he faced when he was still playing with the Green Bay Packers.

Rodgers’ comments referred back to 2021, when he said he’d been “immunized,” faced with the question of his vaccination status. In Netflix’s Aaron Rodgers: Enigma episode 3, he revealed that he had prepared a statement in case a follow-up question came after his statement, but the follow-up questions went in a different direction.

Weeks later, Rodgers got COVID-19 and sat out a game against the Kansas City Chiefs. The media had a field day, and Rodgers found himself under intense scrutiny until he came on the Pat McAfee Show to explain what his original “immunized” statement meant. He’d undergone an alternative immunization process with a doctor who worked with kids with compromised immune systems – as he revealed on Netflix.

Now, despite all the attention Aaron Rodgers’ latest comments have garnered, Mike McCarthy has chosen to stick to football instead of fueling any more drama. The 2026 season is Aaron Rodgers’ last in the NFL, and for now, Steel City is focused on bringing the best out of their veteran quarterback as they move through training camp at the Saint Vincent College in Latrobe.