Aaron Rodgers headed to the locker room just before halftime during the Green Bay Packers’ game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in Week 11. Rodgers reportedly received treatment for a toe injury that had been bothering him, and then took the field in the second half. The Vikings won the game, 34-31, but Rodgers looked phenomenal, finishing the afternoon with 385 yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions.
No, Aaron Rodgers doesn’t have ‘Covid Toe.’ Yes, that’s a real thing
Aaron Rodgers showed his feet to prove he doesn’t have ‘Covid Toe.’
Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
Rodgers talked about his toe injury during his weekly appearance on the Pat McAfee Show the following Tuesday. He only seemed to cause more confusion with his comments, which is the Aaron Rodgers specialty when it comes to medical information at this point.
When asked about his recovering from a positive Covid test earlier this month, Rodgers responded: “No lingering effects, other than the Covid Toe.” You can watch the clip here:
Rodgers offered two other quotes that shed light on his status during the interview:
- “I believe that I mentioned that it was more painful than turf toe – and I had turf toe two years ago,” Rodgers said. “Naturally I’m leading people to understand that if it’s worse than turf toe it must have some kind of bone issue.”
- “I’ve given you enough information at this point – I have a toe injury that’s not going away and I’m going to be dealing with it for at least the next few weeks.”
He said it’s his pinky toe that’s bothering him.
Rodgers clarified his status during his Tuesday press conference. Rodgers said he has a fractured toe. Then he showed his bare foot to the assembled press:
Rodgers hasn’t been fully honest about his status since he told the media he was “immunized” when asked if he was vaccinated. This probably isn’t surprising for someone who takes his medical advice from Dr. Joe Rogan, as he’s stated previously. Let’s dive into it.
Yes, ‘Covid toe’ is a real thing
The symptoms for Covid Toe are discoloration, swelling, and a lot of pain. It can show up 1-4 weeks after a positive Covid diagnosis, which would match Rodgers’ own timeline.
“The way I would think about it is it’s basically a side effect of how your own immune system is fighting the virus,” said Esther Freeman, a doctor and principal investigator for the Covid-19 Dermatology Registry, told the Wall Street Journal.
‘Covid Toe’ can be exasperated by cold weather, which isn’t great news for someone like Rodgers who plays football outdoors in Wisconsin in the winter. It will usually go away after 2-6 weeks, according to WebMD.
Of course Rodgers doesn’t have Covid Toe
‘Covid Toe’ is supposed to be a skin condition. Rodgers inferred that he has a bone issue, but of course he stated it in the weirdest way possible — “Naturally I’m leading people to understand that if it’s worse than turf toe it must have some kind of bone issue” — instead of just saying it like a normal person.
A fractured toe always made the most sense.
The Packers play at the Los Angeles Rams this week, and then have their bye week. After that is a Sunday night game in Chicago against the Bears, which will almost certainly be very chilly. Not that that’s ever stopped Rodgers from dismantling the Bears before.
Rodgers may be hobbled by his toe injury this week against LA and moving forward. Chances are he’ll still be pretty great at throwing the football.
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