Aaron Rodgers Publicly Apologizes to Shailene Woodley for His COVID Controversy Amid Breakup Reports
Aaron Rodgers continued his public effort to make amends with Shailene Woodley amid reports that the two have ended their romantic relationship and engagement. Entertainment Tonightreports that Rodgers publicly apologized to
Woodley for what he put her through during his NFL COVID vaccine scandal last year. Rodgers made misleading comments about his vaccination status, claiming he was immunized when, in reality, he hadn’t gotten any COVID-19 vaccine.
On Pat McAfee’s SiriusXM Radio show yesterday, he said, “One thing that I am sad about and definitely apologetic is I didn’t realize in the midst of the COVID conversations how much my situation was affecting my loved ones and my people. I didn’t realize the kind of shrapnel that was being flaked off of what I felt like were the bullets coming at me because I was too locked in on me and defending myself and trying to get a message out. I never wanted to be divisive in this whole thing, I really didn’t. The issue is polarizing, I get that and I know there’s a lot of fear involved around that, but my intention was never to be divisive.”
He then went on to apologize to Woodley directly. “I am very sorry to those people, Shai and my loved ones. I didn’t realize the kind of shrapnel they’d be taking…Understanding kind of the entire gravity of the situation I was thrust into and decided to speak on multiple times had an effect on a lot of people. To those people, I just say I’m sorry.”
Rodgers’s public apology to Woodley comes after he shared a tribute to her on Instagram where he wrote about loving her. Woodley did not like or comment on the post.
“@shailenewoodley, thanks for letting me chase after you the first couple months after we met, and finally letting me catch up to you and be a part of your life,” he wrote. “Thanks for always having my back, for the incredible kindness you show me and everyone you meet, and for showing me what unconditional love looks like, I love you and am grateful for you.”
Sources told multiple outlets that Rodgers and Woodley intended to stay friends following their broken engagement. They split because of distance and just being very different people.
A source close to the former couple told Peoplelast week, “They fell hard and fast, but it was a mismatch from the start. Aaron’s a complicated guy. No one in their circle is surprised this didn’t work out. In the bubble of the pandemic, it was easy for them to fall in love and focus only on their relationship but that’s not real life.”
A source added to Us Weekly, “They certainly had their differences and ultimately their relationship didn’t work. They thought were a good match for each other in the beginning but the more they got to know each other they realized their careers, their interests [and] their political views weren’t aligned.” That source added that Rodgers prioritized football over Woodley. “He was focusing more on the sport than on future plans with Shailene,” the source said.