Aaron Rodgers Was 'Immunised' Against COVID Without a Vaccine
Aaron Rodgers told the NFL and the media he was 'immunised', implying he was vaccinated, and then tested positive for COVID one week into the season. It emerged that he had been following an alternative protocol developed in consultation with Robert Malone. No alternative immunisation protocol is clinically equivalent to a vaccine.
What we know
Aaron Rodgers is the acclaimed quarterback of the Green Bay Packers NFL franchise who, at a press conference in August 2021, said he was 'immunised' when asked about his vaccination status by a reporter - an answer that virtually every journalist present interpreted as confirmation of vaccination. Rodgers was well aware of how that formulation would be received.
One week into the 2021 season, Rodgers tested positive for COVID-19. It then became public knowledge that he had not been vaccinated, but had instead been following an alternative protocol developed in consultation with Robert Malone and homeopathic physicians: a protocol that included ivermectin, zinc, vitamin D, and other supplements. Rodgers claimed he was allergic to a component of mRNA vaccines and had undergone an alternative immunisation procedure.
The problem with 'alternative immunisation' is straightforward: there is no clinical evidence that any of those protocols provides protection against COVID-19 equivalent to that offered by authorised vaccines. NFL rules explicitly distinguished between vaccinated and unvaccinated players, imposing stricter quarantine protocols on the latter - suggesting that Rodgers's 'immunised' formulation had been strategically chosen to circumvent that distinction. Rodgers was criticised for this by team-mates, the NFL, and the public.
Rodgers subsequently appeared in contexts involving anti-vaccine rhetoric and conspiracy theories, including statements about Fauci and 'cancel culture.' He became one of the most prominent athletes to have popularised anti-COVID-vaccine rhetoric within a sporting context.
Common claims
- Alternative protocols provide equivalent protection to COVID vaccines.False - no clinical evidence supports this
- Rodgers deliberately used the word 'immunised' to avoid NFL vaccination protocols.Supported - the NFL investigated and penalised him
- Rodgers tested positive for COVID one week into the season.Supported