Pat McAfee backpedals, hopes Aaron Rodgers will appear on show

Fans of the "Pat McAfee Show" looking forward to an Aaron Rodgers-free experience rejoiced after the former punter turned sports media mogul announced that the outspoken New York Jets quarterback wouldn't appear on the program moving forward. 

However, only hours later, McAfee has changed his tune. Sort of. 

Shortly after showing glee over the fact that Rodgers and the drama surrounding him wouldn't be a part of his show on ESPN for the rest of the NFL season, McAfee felt that many misinterpreted his message, prompting a bit of backpedaling on social media. 

In an exceedingly long post on X, formerly known as Twitter, McAfee clarified that Rodgers was an in-season guest only before low-key begging the QB to return while hinting at potential "surprise pop-ins." 

"I never said he'll never be on the show again," McAfee said. "I hope he chooses to still chat with us. We've been lucky the last four years to ride the wave of a season with a four-time MVP and get his thoughts along the way ... in real-time." 

Rodgers has never shied away from sharing controversial opinions and has routinely used his weekly appearances on McAfee's show to spread them to millions. 

Recently, he decided to spew an unfounded conspiracy theory about late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, who works for ABC, a flagship of The Walt Disney Company, which owns operational control of ESPN.

According to Richard Deitsch of The Athletic, McAfee has creative control and likely made the call to keep Rodgers away from the show for now, adding that he's "certain" ESPN supported the move. 

McAfee's attempt at damage control likely stems from desperation. Rodgers was arguably one of the show's most noteworthy guests, and ratings are declining at an alarming pace overall. Regardless, it might be important to remember why he drew eyes in the first place. 

Initially, many tuned in to see what he had to say regarding the future following a split from the Green Bay Packers. However, that has since devolved into irresponsible diatribes about important topics he has no knowledge or authority to speak on. 

McAfee said his goal for the show was to "talk s--- about sports." If that's still the case, rethinking his stance on Rodgers and steering clear might be a good start.