Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, sidelined by COVID-19, acknowledged Tuesday that he "misled some people" regarding his vaccination status.
In an explosive interview last week on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Sirius XM, Rodgers confirmed he’s unvaccinated; claimed he's allergic to vaccines and has taken ivermectin; said he is the victim of a “woke mob”; and acknowledged he's been seeking COVID-19 advice from podcaster Joe Rogan.
"I made some comments that people might have felt were misleading and to anybody who felt misled by those comments, I take full responsibility for those comments," Rodgers told "The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday.
Later in the interview, the 37-year-old reigning NFL MVP acknowledged making misleading statements.
"I shared an opinion that is polarizing, I get it," Rodgers said. “And I misled some people about my status which I take full responsibility of, those comments."
The sidelined QB, though, didn't back down from comments that now threaten his lucrative endorsement deals.
"But in the end, I have to stay true to who I am and what I’m about and I stand behind the things that I said," Rodgers told the sports talk show. "And I have a ton of empathy for people who have been going through the worst part of this pandemic."
Rodgers could be back on the field on Sunday when the Packers play the Seattle Seahawks.
"I’m excited about feeling better, I'm excited about moving forward and hopefully getting back with my team and getting back to doing what I do best and that's playing ball," Rodgers said.
"It’s been tough to be away from it. I've been obviously dealing with the COVID and I feel like I’m on the other side of it thankfully and thankful to still be able to have something to look forward to this weekend."
Before the season, Rodgers was asked if he was vaccinated and he responded in the affirmative, saying he had been "immunized."
After it was revealed last week that Rodgers hadn't been vaccinated, and perhaps failed to meet NFL protocols for unvaccinated players, he was roundly criticized and even called a liar.
"Because that’s what you did, Aaron. You lied to everyone," Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw told pregame viewers on Fox on Sunday.
The NFL is investigating whether the quarterback or team violated COVID-19 protocols.
In his interview last week, Rodgers invoked the memory of Martin Luther King Jr., claiming the slain civil rights leader would have agreed that he had a “moral obligation to object to unjust rules and rules that make no sense.”
Nearly 760,000 Americans have died from COVID-19, according to a running tally by NBC News.
Related:
This story first appeared on NBCNews.com.