Jimmy Kimmel devotes seven minutes of monologue to blasting Aaron Rodgers

"Jimmy Kimmel Live!" was back for its first new show of 2024 on Monday night, and if you thought the host might have a few things to say about New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers … you were not disappointed.

Kimmel spent seven minutes of his monologue delivering a takedown of Rodgers, one week after Rodgers casually implied the unfounded idea that Kimmel would appear on the list of associates of accused sex trafficker and child abuser Jeffrey Epstein.

Kimmel, who had immediately responded with a rebuke on social media after Rodgers made the comments on the "Pat McAfee Show" last Tuesday, spoke earnestly for most of the segment, but he did fit in a well-timed jab or two.

"Aaron Rodgers has a very high opinion of himself," Kimmel said. "Because he had success on a football field, he believes himself to be an extraordinary being. He genuinely thinks, because God gave him an ability to throw a ball, he's smarter than everyone else. The idea that his brain is just average is unfathomable to him. We learned during COVID somehow he knows more about science than scientists. A guy who went to community college, then got into Cal on a football scholarship and didn't graduate. Someone who never spent a minute studying the human body is an expert in the field of immunology.

"He put on a magic helmet, and that G made him a genius," Kimmel joked. "Aaron got two A's on his report card, and they were both in the word 'Aaron.'"

Kimmel said either Rodgers genuinely believed Kimmel would be found on the Epstein list, or in a more likely scenario, Rodgers was simply irritated with Kimmel after the late-night TV host made jokes at Rodgers' expense in early 2023. Those jabs came after Rodgers implied on the McAfee show that an uptick in UFO sightings was a coordinated effort to distract from more important issues like the Epstein list.

More: Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel absolutely obliterates Aaron Rodgers in new monologue

"Can you imagine that this hamster-brained man thinks he knows what the government is up to because he's a quarterback doing research on YouTube and listening to podcasts?" Kimmel said.

"Aaron Rodgers is too arrogant to know how ignorant he is. They let him host 'Jeopardy!' for two weeks. Now, he knows everything. … But saying someone is a pedophile is not an opinion nor is it trash talk; sorry, Pat McAfee."

How is what Rodgers said different from Kimmel making jokes nightly at others' expense?

"We don't make up lies," Kimmel said. "In fact, we have a team of people who work very hard to sift through facts and reputable sources before I make a joke, and that's an important distinction. When I do get something wrong, which happens on rare occasions, I apologize for it. Which is what Aaron Rodgers should do, which is what a decent person would do, but I bet he won't. If he does, you know what I'll do? I'll accept his apology and move on. But he probably won't do that … I hope I'm wrong. That's how I think it'll go."

Rodgers indicated during his media availability Monday that he'd have more to say on the matter on his Tuesday appearance with McAfee.

Former Packers vice president Andrew Brandt, who worked closely with Rodgers when he first signed with the franchise and who regularly opines on matters of sports business, said he did expect Rodgers to apologize.

"Yes, I absolutely think Aaron will apologize, surprised it hasn't happened yet," Brandt wrote on X. "I thought by now that Aaron's agents would have reached out to Kimmel's agents to set up a call. It sounds like that hasn't happened yet. The drama continues."

The Jets finished the season Sunday at 7-10, managing to match their record from the previous season even without Rodgers, acquired in the offseason with much fanfare but then lost for the year with a torn Achilles on the first drive of the season.

"Congratulations to Aaron Rodgers, who has done the impossible," Kimmel said. "He made the New York Jets even worse."

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Jimmy Kimmel blasts Aaron Rodgers at length during Monday monologue