Stephen A. Smith was critical of Aaron Rodgers on Thursday for the way the star quarterback misled people about his vaccination status, but Jay Williams was not satisfied with his colleague’s delivery.
During Thursday’s edition of “First Take,” Smith called Rodgers a liar and criticized him for violating the NFL’s COVID-19 protocols for unvaccinated players. He also said Rodgers’ deception hurts his credibility in other areas. You can hear the comments below:
https://twitter.com/FirstTake/status/1456305397464244237
A lot of people were surprised that Smith, who is a big Rodgers fan, came down on the reigning NFL MVP so hard. Williams felt differently. He unloaded on Smith for the way Smith ripped Kyrie Irving for not getting vaccinated compared to how Smith spoke about Rodgers.
https://twitter.com/TribeERAWW/status/1456297581932388365
Williams seemed to be reaching a bit. Smith is right that it was natural for him to be less animated about Rodgers since those he was discussing the subject with agreed with him. That wasn’t the case when he ripped Irving a few weeks back. Williams defended Irving’s decision to not get vaccinated, which led to a heated debate between him and Smith. You can see that video here.
Of course, the idea of “First Take” is for Smith to argue with his co-hosts. Williams was just doing his part.
Rodgers tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday and will miss Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. He was asked over the summer if he is vaccinated, and he said he has been “immunized.” We’ve since learned that he was referring to a homeopathic treatment he received.
