Aaron Rodgers Slams Brother Jordan's 'Bachelorette' Appearance

Aaron Rodgers's estrangement from his family was brought to the nation's attention in 2016 when his brother Jordan Rodgers was on ABC's The Bachelorette. During Jordan's "hometown" date with lead JoJo Fletcher—whom he ended up proposing to on the show and married in 2022—the family, including parents Edward and Darla and older brother Luke, spoke about their strained relationship with the NFL star. Now, during his Netflix docu-series, Aaron Rodgers: Enigma, Aaron is reflecting on his feelings about how the reality show portrayed the fallout with his family.

"I was quiet about it because I thought the best way to do it was to just, don't talk about it publicly," the New York Jets quarterback said of his mindset about his family at the time. "And what do they do? They go on a bullshit show and leave two empty chairs," said Rodgers, the second chair presumably being for then-girlfriend Olivia Munn. He continued: "They all agreed this was a good thing to do, leave two empty chairs at a stupid dating show that my brother just went on to get famous. His words, not mine, though he ended up winning."

At the time that The Bachelorette aired, Rodgers remained tight-lipped about the show and his brother's storyline. "I haven't seen the show, to be honest with you, so it hasn't really affected me a whole lot," he said in 2016.

During the Netflix show, which premiered on December 17, Aaron revealed that he was "never asked to go to" on the show. "Not that I would've gone," he added. On the episode, the family opened up about the distance between them and the football player.

Aaron explained that some of his differing beliefs are what drove a wedge between him and his family. "I found a lot of resistance to doing things that, compared to what I grew up in, would be considered an alternative lifestyle," he said. "They're living the best they can, still engulfed in organized religion, which works for them, that's great. So as much as they might not like what they see, [I have] love, respect, and gratitude for how I was raised because it turned me into who I am today."

He went on to say that although he doesn't see eye to eye with them, he still wishes his family the best. "I don't want them to fail, to struggle, to have any strife or issues," he said. "I don't wish any ill will on them at all. It's like this: We're just at different steps on the timeline of our own journeys."

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