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The Green Bay Packers and quarterback Aaron Rodgers have been fined for violations of COVID protocols, according to ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. The organization is being docked $300,000, while Rodgers and teammate Allen Lazard are each being fined $14,650.
Lazard was a close contact to Davante Adams, who tested positive for the virus ahead of the team’s Week 8 contest against the Cardinals. Lazard, who is unvaccinated, must’ve also been allowed to ignore protocols.
Rodgers, who made headlines for his misleading comments about his vaccination status before going on a 46-minute tirade about his situation last Friday on The Pat McAfee Show. The quarterback contracted COVID and had to sit out the team’s Week 9 game against the Chiefs. His status for Week 10 against the Seahawks is still in some doubt, as Rodgers can only return to the team Saturday following a 10-day quarantine. Head coach Matt LaFleur has said Rodgers will start if he’s available regardless of his lack of practice.
Rodgers converted $14.46 million of his base salary into a signing bonus. The fine is one-tenth of one percent of that amount. It’s unclear if this will have any impact on Rodgers and the team going forward with regards to protocols but the quarterback did appear on The Pat McAfee Show Tuesday to backtrack some of his previous comments as sponsors began to weigh in on Friday’s interview. Let’s see if Rodgers and the Packers follow the protocols going forward.