To Aaron Rodgers, banning Novak Djokovic from last year’s U.S. Open was a bad Djoke.
The Jets quarterback was asked Thursday about his post to his Instagram Story over the weekend about Djokovic.
Rodgers attended the U.S. Open on Sunday and posted a photo of Djokovic but crossed out a Moderna sign in the background and used the hashtag #novaxdjokovic.
Rodgers explained his post on Thursday.
“Well, I’m a big fan of Novak and I got to see him in person,” Rodgers said. “I took that photo and then realized that there was a little Moderna sign in the background. Novak is one of the most fit athletes in the world and I think that anybody looking at the situation realizes how ridiculous it was to not allow him into the country with [his] level of fitness and the way he takes care of his body. Like him, I care about health and I was just having a little bit of fun with it.”
Djokovic took a stance against getting the COVID-19 vaccine and missed last year’s U.S. Open due to a mandate that required non-U.S. citizens to be vaccinated to enter the country.
Rodgers was in the middle of the vaccine controversy in 2021 when he said he was “immunized” but then later tested positive for COVID.
Rodgers said he was allergic to some of the ingredients in the vaccine and chose to have alternative holistic treatment.
Rodgers said that he was not an “anti-vaxxer” but wanted to “make the best choice for my body.”
Rodgers, 39, will make his Jets regular-season debut Monday when the Buffalo Bills visit MetLife Stadium.
Head coach Robert Saleh said the Jets are not necessarily embracing being “hated,” but he does think having a better team draws some of the criticism his club is getting.
“I guess I look at it as, if you can’t keep our names out of your mouth then it must mean we are doing something good,” Saleh said. “With that said, we haven’t done anything. We still have to win football games. In the two years we have been here, we have won 11 of them, but I do think we have done a really nice job, we have made a lot of progress and we have positioned ourselves to have a good year, but we still have to go out and do it.”
Everyone practiced for the Jets. OT Duane Brown (shoulder), OT Mekhi Becton (knee) and RB Breece Hall (knee) were limited.
