Aaron Rodgers will not return to Pat McAfee Show after Jimmy Kimmel row

The NFL quarterback recently claimed he hadn’t intended to imply Kimmel is a paedophile

Aaron Rodgers will not be returning to his weekly slot on ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show.

The NFL quarterback recently became embroiled in a row after implying on air that talk show host Jimmy Kimmel could be named on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s client list.

McAfee made the announcement at the beginning of Wednesday’s episode. The host said: “‘Aaron Rodgers Tuesday,’ Season 4, is done.

“There could be a lot of people that are happy with that. Myself included, to be honest with you. The way it ended, it got real loud. I’m happy that he’s not gonna be in my mentions going forward, which is great news.”

McAfee added: “Aaron Rodgers is a Hall of Famer, he’s a four-time MVP, he’s a massive piece of the NFL story. Whenever you go back and tell it he will be a huge part of it. We are very lucky to get the chance to chat with him and learn from him.

“Some of his thoughts and opinions, though, do piss off a lot of people. I’m pumped that that is no longer going to be every single Wednesday of my life, which it has been for the last few weeks.”

Jimmy Kimmel (left) and Aaron Rodgers (AP)

The row began last week, when Rodgers said of the Epstein documents: “There’s a lot of people, including Jimmy Kimmel, really hoping that doesn’t come out.”

Kimmel subsequently “denied any contact whatsoever” with the disgraced financier in a statement posted on X/Twitter, while condemning Rodgers’s “reckless words”.

When Rodgers made his return to The Pat McAfee Show this Tuesday, he claimed he never meant to imply Kimmel was a paedophile.

“I totally understand how serious an allegation of paedophilia would be. So him to be upset about that, I get it,” said Rodgers. “I’m not stupid enough – even though you think I’m an idiot, and you’ve made a lot of comments about my intelligence – but I’m not stupid enough to accuse you of that with absolutely zero evidence, concrete evidence. That’s ridiculous.”

The NFL star added: “So I’m glad, and I think we can agree on something, it’s that, one: those crimes are heinous; and two: I’m glad you’re not on a list because those who are on this list – and this I think we can agree on – that, at minimum, there should be an inquiry into their involvement. Especially if they went to the island. And at maximum, there should be an investigation into it.”

Bill Clinton, Richard Branson, and Prince Andrew are among 100 people named in newly unsealed court documents linked to the disgraced financier Epstein, who died in a New York jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. All vigorously deny any wrongdoing. Kimmel, meanwhile, does not appear on the list.