SI

Aaron Rodgers Skipping Mandatory Minicamp Leads to Vintage NYC Tabloid Back Pages

The Jets created a controversy and now everyone wants to know the whereabouts of Aaron Rodgers.

Jimmy Traina

Saleh said Tuesday that Rodgers’s absence is unexcused, even though Rodgers told the team he’d be missing minicamp.
Saleh said Tuesday that Rodgers’s absence is unexcused, even though Rodgers told the team he’d be missing minicamp. / Tom Horak-USA TODAY Sports
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1. There’s rarely a dull moment with Aaron Rodgers these days. And now that he’s in New York, all of those controversial moments get memorialized with tabloid back pages.

With the Jets engulfed in one their typical LOLJets moments because of Rodgers skipping mandatory training camp, the New York Post and New York Daily News came through with high-quality back pages.

While the focus is on Rodgers for skipping camp, I think it’s the Jets who look bad here, not the quarterback. Coach Robert Saleh said Tuesday that Rodgers’s absence is unexcused, even though Rodgers told the team he’d be missing minicamp.

This led to a day of speculation about what exactly Rodgers is doing that would be more important than camp. If the Jets knew he was going to miss it, why tell the media it was unexcused and Rodgers is subject to fine? Why not just say, “We knew Aaron wouldn’t be here and he cleared it with us”?

Instead, the city of New York and the internet has done nothing but speculate about quarterback's whereabouts.

Saleh made things even worse on Tuesday by saying, “Aaron and I are on the exact same page. There's no issue between Aaron or his teammates, for that matter. We addressed it yesterday. It's more of an issue for everyone outside the building than it is inside."

Hold on. Saleh is the one who told the media Rodgers’s absence was unexcused. Now he’s trying to say this is an issue for people outside the building. Saleh lit the match, but now wants to blame others for wanting to know how the fire started.

And as much as Saleh wants to say this is no big deal, it’s going to get another cycle of coverage once Rodgers reveals where he was for the three days of minicamp (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) that he missed. Outside of a family-type event/situation, whatever the reason will become major fodder.

Only the Jets.

2. TNT turned one of the Knicks-Pacers playoff games into the Reggie Miller Show and now Reggie Miller is speaking out against being the star of the Reggie Miller Show.

3. Pirates phenom pitcher Paul Skenes tossed 6.1 shutout innings against the Cardinals on Tuesday night while allowing five hits, walking no one and striking out eight. When Pittsburgh manager Derek Shelton pulled Skenes from the game, the crowd gave him a standing ovation.

Why is this notable?

Because the game was in St. Louis.

I’m sorry, but this is ridiculous. Actually, I’m not sorry. This is just ridiculous.

4. We’ve seen fans run on to the field and get chased down by security for years. But what happened at Tuesday’s Reds game was another level. The fan gave us a backflip before security tased him.

5. You may have seen over the weekend that British MLB broadcaster Darren Fletcher had an absolutely electric call of the final out in Sunday’s Mets-Phillies game.

My SI colleague, Kyle Koster, caught up with Fletcher about his viral moment.

6. The latest episode of SI Media With Jimmy Traina features an interview with The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand, who shares information and gives updates on the biggest news in sports media.

Topics covered include the latest developments with the NBA's future TV deals with ESPN, NBC and Amazon and where things stand with Warner Bros. Discovery/TNT. Marchand also reveals what he thinks NBC's plan is for a lead broadcast team, what will happen with the Inside the NBA crew of Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O'Neal, whether Barkley could end up at ESPN and why the relationship between TNT and the NBA deteriorated.

Marchand also discusses the Pat McAfee–Caitlin Clark controversy, the media's coverage of Clark and the WNBA and Tom Brady's future at Fox.

Following Marchand, Sal Licata from WFAN and SNY joins me for our weekly "Traina Thoughts" segment. This week's topics include new sports TV shows that are on the radar and the Yankees' dominance.

You can listen to the SI Media With Jimmy Traina below or on Apple and Spotify.

You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Sports Illustrated‘s YouTube channel.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: The second that I saw the news Tuesday that Rory McIlroy was calling off his divorce, I had one thought and one thought only: Eddie Murphy’s famous bit about “half” in Raw. I can’t post the entire bit because it might be a little much for SI, so you should YouTube it, but this portion of the bit is still as funny as it gets.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.

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Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.

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