MVP Voter Admits He Made 'Big Mistake' With Aaron Rodgers Comment

Chicago-based sportswriter Hub Arkush previously said he would not vote for the Packers quarterback due to off-field concerns.

Hub Arkush, a Chicago-based sportswriter and one of 50 Associated Press voters, walked back his comments about how he'd vote for this year's Most Valuable Player are on Wednesday, admitting that he made a “big mistake.” 

“I made a big mistake,” Arkush said on Chicago's 670 The Score radio station Wednesday. “As far as what happened last night, it's on me. I screwed up.”

Arkush discussed Tuesday how he will not be voting for Aaron Rodgers, the overwhelming favorite, to win MVP. Arkush said Tuesday that Rodgers is "the biggest jerk in the league,” though upon talking on 670 The Score the next day, Arkush said his error “doesn't have much to do with Aaron Rodgers,” but rather that he “failed to respect” the cardinal rule of voting—not disclosing your plans prior to it being announced. 

“The only thing they really ask us is to not tell people who we voted for until the award is presented. What they really mean is just don't talk about it, and the reason, in part, is because of exactly what's happened here," he said, per USA Today's Cydney Henderson. “I feel awful about it and I really wish it hadn't happened."

Arkush did not reveal who he was actually voting for but said on Tuesday that the way Rodgers carried himself off the field—citing his violation of COVID-19 protocols—is what ultimately caused him to be unworthy of winning the MVP award this year.

“I just think that the way he’s carried himself is inappropriate,” Arkush said. “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.”

Rodgers suggested on The Pat McAfee Show Tuesday that voters won’t pick him because of his COVID-19 vaccination status and the public fallout over the last several weeks.  

Despite the off-the-field controversy, Rodgers has been putting up MVP-caliber numbers this season, throwing for 3,977 yards and 35 touchdowns with only four interceptions. And as another season wraps up, the question was posed about the status of Rodgers’s future with the Packers. He has previously revealed that he has not ruled out retirement just yet, and on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday, Rodgers mentioned that he has already given a lot of time to the game he loves.

“I didn’t start playing until eighth grade, obviously four years in high school, played three in college," Rodgers said. "[This is] my 17th [year in the NFL]. At some point, you know, the ride stops and you got to get off."

“You know, you want to, I think, still be able to play, still be able to walk, still be able to have, you know, cognitive brain function when you’re done playing. Those are important. I’ve really been trying this year to just stay in the present as much as possible.”

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