ESPN issued an apology Friday afternoon for the false comments New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers made on “The Pat McAfee Show” earlier this week about late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.
Through ESPN vice president of digital production Mike Foss, the network called the comments Rodgers made about Kimmel in relation to the release of the Jeffrey Epstein court documents “a dumb and factually inaccurate joke.”
“It never should have happened,” Foss said in a statement obtained by USA TODAY Sports. “We all realized that in the moment.”
Front Office Sports first reported the ESPN apology. McAfee said Friday that Rodgers will appear on the show next Tuesday.
“The show will continue to evolve,” Foss told FOS. “It wouldn’t surprise me if Aaron’s role evolves with it.”
Kimmel took to social media Tuesday night to blast Rodgers and say he never had any contact with Epstein, who died by suicide while imprisoned in 2019.
Earlier that day, McAfee co-host A.J. Hawk egged Rodgers on about the potential release of the court documents, to which the 40-year-old quarterback responded: “There’s a lot of people, including Jimmy Kimmel who are hoping that doesn’t come out … if that list comes out, I will definitely be popping some sort of bottles.”
The situation created internal strife at ESPN’s parent company Disney, which also owns ABC, where “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” airs.
Rodgers is paid $1 million annually for his weekly appearances on McAfee’s show, according to reports. On Wednesday, McAfee…
