MVP Voter Calls Aaron Rodgers a 'Jerk' So Rodgers Calls Him a 'Bum'

Former Cal star a heavy favorite to win MVP -- unless Rodgers' comments and behavior cause voters to snub him

This MVP thing got interesting on Wednesday. An MVP voter said he won’t vote for former Cal standout Aaron Rodgers for MVP because he’s a “jerk” and a “bad guy,” and Rodgers responded by calling that voter an “absolute bum.”

OK, here’s the state of the MVP race. Every betting site has Rodgers as an overwhelming favorite to win his fourth MVP award and second straight. (The odds are listed at the end of this story.)

Rodgers plans to play in Sunday’s game against the Lions even though the Packers have clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC and a first-round bye.

Fifty media members vote for the Associated Press MVP award, which is considered the “official” MVP award, and one of those 50 voters is Hub Arkush, editor of Pro Football Weekly. Arkush said during an interview on Chicago radio station WSCR-AM on Tuesday that he won’t vote for Rodgers for MVP because of his off-field character.

He called Rodgers a "jerk" and a “bad guy.”

Rodgers requested a trade during the offseason and had a brief holdout. He also got considerable pushback for his November comments about choosing not to be vaccinated and his unwillingness to be forthright about that choice earlier in the season.

“I don’t think you can be the biggest jerk in the league and punish your team, and your organization and your fan base the way he did and be the Most Valuable Player,” Arkush said. “Has he been the most valuable on the field? Yeah, you could make that argument, but I don’t think he is clearly that much more valuable than Jonathan Taylor or Cooper Kupp or maybe even Tom Brady. So from where I sit, the rest of it is why he’s not gonna be my choice."

“I just think that the way he’s carried himself is inappropriate. I think he’s a bad guy, and I don’t think a bad guy can be the most valuable guy at the same time.”

You can listen to all of Arkush's comments in the radio interview by clicking here.

Rodgers responded to Arkush Wednesday with this:

“I think he's a bum. I think he's an absolute bum.”

Rodgers believes Arkush should be excluded from voting for the MVP because of his bias against Rodgers as a person.

“His problem is I’m not vaccinated,” said Rodgers, who added that the MVP then should be “the most vaccinated player.”

“But he’s a bum,” Rodgers said, according to Pro Football Talk. “And I’m not going to waste any time worrying about that stuff. He has no idea who I am. He’s never talked to me in his life. But it’s unfortunate that those sentiments — it’s surprising that he would even say that, to be honest. But I knew this was possible. I talked about it on McAfee weeks ago. But…crazy.”

Back in November, before Rodgers was the frontrunner for the MVP award, Pat McAfee said he thought Rodgers had no chance to win another MVP because of his comments regarding the vaccination. "That’s probably never going to happen, right?"

Rodgers, laughing, responded by saying, "I do think that's a legitimate statement."

Arkush later issued a written apology, which you can read by clicking here.

Here is an excerpt of the apology:

I made a terrible mistake. It was completely my fault. There is no one else to blame, and I am here to try and apologize. I own this and I couldn’t be more sorry.

… On Tuesday, at 670 The Score in Chicago, where I am regularly employed as an analyst and host, for reasons that I am still trying to come to grips with but were completely my responsibility, I allowed myself to be walked into a conversation about an MVP candidate I knew I would not be voting for. I said some things that while not unreasonable in the context they were said, I voiced them in totally inappropriate ways.

I couldn’t possibly be more sorry for joining the conversation at all and some of the childish things I said about Aaron Rodgers.

I’ve apparently unleashed a small army of self-styled social media and talk radio experts who have no clue what they’re talking about to challenge the quality of the voting process and would attempt to invalidate any vote or thought process that doesn’t agree with their own.

Besides the comedy aspect of this name-calling, this report brings up an important question: Will Rodgers’ comments about vaccination and/or his offseason stance cause enough MVP voters to not vote for Rodgers, enabling someone else to win the award. Akrush says he knows of other MVP voters who won't vote for Rodgers.

Or. . . .

Will the fact that Arkush is being painted as a biased voter actually work in Rodgers’ favor, causing some voters to reassess their positions as objective voters and vote for Rodgers despite their disapproval of Rodgers as a person? 

The oddmakers seem to think the MVP race is over, with most saying Rodgers is a 1-to-4 favorite to win the award. With one game left, that is virtually insurmountable – at least in the oddsmakers’ minds. They don’t know what is lurking in the minds of MVP voters, who are a wide range of television, radio and print media members who are considered the most knowledgeable NFL reporters.

Here is how some of the most popular betting sites see the odds:

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Draft Kings (via Vegas Insider)

Aaron Rodgers: -400 (or 1-to-4)

Tom Brady: +500 (or 5-to-1)

Joe Burrow: +1200 (or 12-to-1)

Jonathan Taylor: +1400 (or 14-to-1)

Cooper Kupp: +3000 (or 30-to-1)

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BetMGM (via Rotowire)

Aaron Rodgers: -400

Tom Brady: +550

Jonathan Taylor: +1400

Joe Burrow: +1400

Cooper Kupp: +4000

Josh Allen: +4000

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Fan Duel

Aaron Rodgers: -400

Tom Brady: +550

Jonathan Taylor: +1400

Joe Burrow: +2000

Josh Allen: +4000

Patrick Mahomes: +4000

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Points Bet (via Rotoword)

Aaron Rodgers: -500

Tom Brady: +450

Joe Burrow: +1000

Jonathan Taylor: +1500

Cooper Kupp: +2000

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Sports Betting Dime

Aaron Rodgers: -400

Tom Brady: +500

Joe Burrow: +1000

Jonathan Taylor: +1600

Cooper Kupp: +2000

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DK Sportsbook

Aaron Rodgers: -400

Tom Brady: +500

Joe Burrow: +1000

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Cover photo of Aaron Rodgers by Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports

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Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53

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