A three-time NFL MVP who is the odds-on favorite to win the award for the fourth time this season isn’t going to be getting a vote from Hub Arkush of The Associated Press.
During an appearance on 670 The Score in Chicago, Arkush, who primarily covers the Bears, said that Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers won’t be getting his vote for MVP this season.
Arkush, who is one of the 50 members of the media the gives a vote for the award that the NFL regards as its official MVP designation, called Rodgers a “bad guy” and said “I don’t think a bad guy can be the most valuable guy at the same time.”
Like many people, Arkush took exception with the way Rodgers misled the public about his vaccination status, which ultimately led to him testing positive for COVID-19 and missing a game the Packers lost to the Chiefs.
“I don’t think you can be the biggest jerk in the league and punish your team, and your organization and your fan base the way he did and be the Most Valuable Player,” Arkush said, per ProFootballTalk. “Has he been the most valuable on the field? Yeah, you could make that argument, but I don’t think he is clearly that much more valuable than Jonathan Taylor or Cooper Kupp or maybe even Tom Brady. So from where I sit, the rest of it is why he’s not gonna be my choice. Do I think he’s gonna win it? Probably. A lot of voters don’t approach it the way I do, but others do, who I’ve spoken to. But one of the ways we get to keep being voters is we’re not allowed to say who we are voting for until after the award has been announced. I’m probably pushing the envelope by saying who I’m not voting for. But we’re not really supposed to reveal our votes.”
The longtime sportswriter also said he knows there will be others who won’t vote for Rodgers this season. “I can guarantee you I will not be the only one not voting for him,” Arkush said. “There’s no guidelines. We are told to pick the guy who we think is most valuable to his team. And I don’t think it says anywhere, ‘strictly on the field,’ although I do think he hurt his team on the field by the way he acted off the field.”
It’s an interesting stance that’s vaguely reminiscent of the way some members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America reversed their Hall of Fame votes for Curt Schilling following his support of last year’s deadly riot at the Capitol. In both cases, it’s probably not technically proper but it also makes some sense.
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