Aaron Rodgers says he’ll play one more season, then vanish completely

Looks like we wonβt have Aaron Rodgers to kick around much longer.
The four-time league MVP said Tuesday on βThe Pat McAfee Showβ that heβs βpretty sureβ the upcoming NFL season β his first as quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers and 21st overall β will be his last.
And after that, Rodgers said, he wonβt be seen or heard from ever again.
βWhen this is all done, itβs Keyser SΓΆze. You wonβt see me,β Rodgers said, referring to the elusive villain in βThe Usual Suspects.β βI wonβt be in the public. I donβt want to live a public life. … Iβm not going to be in in the public eye. When this is done, Iβm done, and you wonβt see me. And Iβm looking forward to that.β
It might seem a tad difficult to imagine Rodgers willingly disappearing from public consciousness for any significant period of time. In addition to being one of the all-time greats at quarterback, Rodgers has kept a pretty high profile in popular culture over the last two decades.
Heβs been in countless commercials. He filled in as host of βJeopardy.β He made the short list of possible running mates during Robert Kennedy Jr.βs presidential bid (that spot ultimately went to Nicole Shanahan). He was in romantic relationships with such famous women as Olivia Munn, Danica Patrick and Shailene Woodley.
In recent years, Rodgers also has become known for his sometimes controversial opinions that he has been more than willing to share during his regular appearances on McAfeeβs show and other platforms.
But, Rodgers insisted Tuesday, βI donβt want the attention,β although he acknowledged, βI know thatβs a narrative out there.β
After 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers and two with the New York Jets, Rodgers signed a one-year deal with the Steelers as a free agent this summer. At mini-camp this month, the Super Bowl XLV MVP told reporters that he had recently gotten married. He has not publicly revealed his wifeβs name.
On Tuesday, Rodgers spoke for nearly four minutes about perceived invasions of his and his wifeβs privacy. He accused paparazzi of βstalkingβ the two of them and asserted that unnamed media outlets had been either publishing sensitive information about the couple or just making things up about them.
βWhat happened to common decency about security and a personal life that we now have to dive into your details of where you live and what youβre doing and who youβre with and who your wife is and if you even have a wife,β Rodgers said. βBecause my wife is a private person, doesnβt have social media, hasnβt been a public person, doesnβt want to be a public person. But now that somehow is a weird thing?β
He added: βMy private life is my private life, and itβs going to stay that way. And Iβm with somebody who wants to be private, and if and when she wants to be out, and thereβs a picture, sheβll choose that. And she deserves the right to that.
βBut the entitlement to information about my private life is so fβ ridiculous and embarrassing. Like, hey, do what you got to do. But just try and leave me out of a conversation, Sports World, for a month. Try and just leave me out, my personal life, my professional life. Try not to talk about me. … Just see if you can do that.β