Aaron Rodgers has been vocal supporter of presidential candidate RFK Jr. over the last year. Could the ex-Packers quarterback be his VP?

Aaron Rodgers wanted Robert Kennedy Jr. to be his partner in a COVID-19 debate last fall to take on fellow NFL player Travis Kelce and Dr. Anthony Fauci.

No such debate occurred.

But will the former Green Bay Packers quarterback take up Kennedy on a request of his own?

Kennedy, better known as RFK Jr., is running as an independent for president of the United States and he reportedly has discussed with Rodgers about being his running mate. He has also talked with former wrestler-turned-one-time-Minnesota Gov. Jesse "The Body" Ventura about the job.

Rodgers, 40, plans to return to the New York Jets this fall after missing all but the first four plays of the season in 2023 with a torn Achilles. But if the future Hall of Famer throws an audible, would it really be a stretch to see Rodgers team with Kennedy, 70, and get into politics? It might not be as shocking as it sounds.

Here is what Rodgers has said about RFK Jr. over the last year, along with how they are similar in their thinking.

Will Aaron Rodgers be the vice president and RFK Jr.'s running mate?

Rodgers has not publicly commented on the report. The New York Times broke the news on Tuesday afternoon and the Journal Sentinel has confirmed it.

The Times reports that RFK Jr. has been communicating with Rodgers "pretty continuously" in the past month and the quarterback, as well as the former governor, "have welcomed the overtures," two people familiar with the discussions told the paper.

On March 9, Rodgers shared a campaign video of RFK Jr. on his X account (formerly Twitter) to his 4.5 million followers. He used the caption "This is presidential."

After the Jets' season ended without a playoff berth for a 13th straight season Rodgers took the podium and had a message to the franchise: "Anything in this building that we're doing individually or collectively that has nothing to do with real winning needs to be assessed. Everything that we do has to have a purpose. It's not a half time thing ... the (expletive) that has nothing to do with winning needs to get out of the building. That will be the focus moving forward. Flush the (expletive).

That comment, of course, is getting repurposed in the aftermath of Tuesday's news that he might be RFK Jr.'s running mate ahead of what is expected to be his 20th NFL season.

Rodgers was also in a public feud with late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel around this time over comments he made about the Jeffrey Epstein list.

What has Aaron Rodgers said about politics and Robert Kennedy Jr.?

Rodgers, at one time, said he had no interest in getting into politics and called it "a sham."

But the quarterback has often gotten into this world with his public comments in recent years as he continues to use his large platform off the football field to harp on his beliefs around the COVID-19 pandemic. A couple years ago, he also got into a war of words with President Joe Biden around the vaccine.

His candidate is RFK Jr., who is part of the famed Kennedy family, though many have been outspoken against his anti-vaccine beliefs.

"I believe in medical freedom and informed consent, and I'm voting for Robert Kennedy Jr.," Rodgers said during his Oct. 27 appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show." Rodgers has called RFK Jr. "my man."

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Aaron Rodgers, RFK Jr. and the COVID vaccine

Rodgers and Kennedy see eye-to-eye and are vocal in their skepticism of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Rodgers, who isn't vaccinated, has made the pandemic and the vaccine his go-to talking point since his positive test after Halloween 2021, blasting the NFL over their health and safety protocols in 2021, advocating for the controversial drug ivermectin, referencing being a victim of cancel culture and supporting other athletes who speak out against vaccinations.

Rodgers also recently said that he does not plan to lower his volume around COVID-19.

"I don’t want the memories to be lost," said Rodgers, citing during a podcast with Joe Rogan of "The Joe Rogan Experience" that he "lost" friends, allies in the media and millions of dollars in sponsorship for expressing his beliefs. "I don’t want what I went through to get brushed over. And also, I don’t give a (f---)."

RFK Jr. frequently discusses anti-vaccine views and conspiracy theories.

Aaron Rodgers asked Robert Kennedy Jr. to be his partner to debate Anthony Fauci and Travis Kelce

It could be a shock to some that Rodgers would be approached for the vice president job. But there might not be a bigger supporter for RFK Jr.'s campaign than Rodgers.

The four-time NFL MVP has invoked Kennedy's name often during his regular appearances on "The Pat McAfee Show," which airs on ESPN, as well as on social media over the last year.

Back in October he told McAfee's large audience that he wanted RFK Jr. to team with him to take on Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl-winning tight end Travis Kelce and Dr. Anthony Fauci, who previously led the country's coronavirus response and served as chief medical adviser to the president, in a debate around COVID-19 vaccines.

Kelce was part of a campaign with pharmaceutical company Pfizer to promote COVID-19 boosters last fall, along with flu shots. While appearing on McAfee's show Rodgers called Kelce "Mr. Pfizer."

Kelce responded to that nickname, saying he never thought he would get into "a vax war" with Rodgers, which then led the quarterback to seek a debate with the Chiefs All-Pro, as well as Fauci, whom he called "a pharmacrat."

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Will Aaron Rodgers be vice president? His relationship with RFK Jr.