Ian O’Connor was given the unique opportunity to conduct an exclusive interview with Aaron Rodgers for his new book – but it wasn’t easy to arrange.
The famed author is releasing his biography next week about what he calls “the most polarizing athlete perhaps in all of sports, but certainly in the NFL,” and he originally completed his book without Rodgers’ own words.
He sent the manuscript in February without Rodgers and heard a month later that Rodgers was finally willing to talk to him.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers participates in an introductory press conference at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center in Florham Park, New Jersey on April 26, 2023. (Elsa/Getty Images)
However, given his family drama, it’s pretty clear that Rodgers has a tight circle of trust that’s best not to break. So when O’Connor reached out to the New York Jets quarterback’s closest confidants, many were reticent and it was a “challenge.”
“A lot of people were afraid to talk about him. His friends and close confidants, I think, assumed I had an agenda to maybe destroy him for his anti-vaccine stance, which I absolutely had no intention of doing,” O’Connor told OutKick’s “Hot Mic.” “It took a while to gain the trust of the people around him and then finally convince him to sit down with me, which he did in February, and that certainly made the book better.”
O’Connor said he tried to get him to speak for the book through the Jets, Rodgers’ agent and Rodgers himself, and even sent him his other books to convince him.
“I wanted to make it clear to him that this is deadly serious work for me,” O’Connor said.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (No. 12) waves to fans as he leaves the field following an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Monday, Dec. 19, 2022. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
JIM HARBAUGH SAYS HE THROWN COLIN KAEPERNICK TO JOIN THE CHARGERS’ COACHING STAFF
Eventually, O’Connor said, he just got persistent enough to the point where Rodgers played along.
“I think I wore him down. I contacted so many of his childhood friends and they texted him and asked for permission to talk to me and that’s what finally convinced him.”
O’Connor knew he would have to delve deep into Rodgers’ personal life, especially his family, to make the project a complete whole. To his surprise, despite the pain, Rodgers was a pretty open book.
“He didn’t like that part of the conversation, but one thing I appreciated about Aaron was that I said to him, ‘Do you understand why, as a biographer, I have to cover this in this book? How can I write the story of your life without covering this 10-year estrangement?’ And he said, ‘No, I understand. You have to do it.’
“I appreciate that because I think a lot of elite athletes wouldn’t have understood that. I even know a few people who would have said, ‘Just write about my career. Why are you even writing about my family?’ He was smart enough to realize that was necessary to paint a complete picture of his career and his life… It wasn’t a pleasant process, but he was willing to engage in it,” O’Connor said.
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers speaks with reporters at the team’s NFL football facility in Florham Park, New Jersey, Monday, Jan. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Dennis Waszak Jr.)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“Out of the Darkness: The Mystery of Aaron Rodgers,” the title of course a play on words with his infamous retreat into the darkness, will be released on August 21st.
Follow Fox News Digital Sports coverage on Xand subscribe the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
