"He's smug, he's condescending, he's aloof" - When Shannon Sharpe drew stark differences between Aaron Rodgers and John Elway's leadership
Aaron Rodgers is unarguably one of the greatest to ever play football. Regardless of his immense talent, A-Rod has failed to convert it into multiple Super Bowl victories. Winning a Super Bowl is a tremendous achievement, and the list of QBs who never win one is almost endless. However, given Rodgers' ability, his playoff record is often put in the spotlight.
Some even suggest he lacks leadership skills, and this was on display when Shannon Sharpe called out Aaron Rodgers in 2016. At the time, the Packers were 4-6 after losing to Washington and Sharpe took aim at Rodgers' leadership on "Undisputed":
"I said six or seven years ago on my own show, he's not a leader and just because he's a great talent, doesn't mean he's a leader and guys like playing with him. ... I know people, I know guys in the locker room, I can read their body language. He's smug, he's condescending, he's aloof.
"Those are not great traits to have if you are going to be aleader of men, because if guys dont think you care about them, you're dismissive because you're so much more superiorly talented than they are?"
Sharpe noted the differences in leadership styles between Rodgers and his old Denver Broncos QB, John Elway:
"Skip, John (Elways) and I were very good friends. He was my quarterback from 90-98. ... There were times that he didn't play like the John Elway that I knew could play like, I would always tell him, 'You my favorite quarterback.' ... I wanted him to know that I was in his corner.
"And if I made a mistake or I dropped a pass, he would say, 'T, I know you'll get the next one.' That's what you need to be a leader. We dismiss everytime a receiver says something (about Rodgers), Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, who it was - 'Oh that's sour grapes.' Come to find Joy Taylor, there's a lot of guys eating those grapes."
Given how often Aaron Rodgers has had back-and-forth with his receivers in his career, many come to agree with Sharpe's views on his leadership and accountability.
Former Packers teammate called out Aaron Rodgers in 2016
Interestingly, these were the same issues pointed out by Aaron Rodgers’ former teammate from the Super Bowl-winning team, Jermichael Finley. In an interview with Bleacher Report in 2016, Finley opined that Rodgers is not a born leader:
"In my opinion, he's a different guy," Finley said. "I didn't really know how he showed his leadership. He wasn't a vocal guy. He really wasn't a hands-on guy. To tell you the truth, it was all about his game and his stats in my opinion.
"He was a guy that kept it all in. He kept grudges close to his chest. If you did something, he never really let it go. He always kept it close to his heart. I just don't think he was a natural-born leader. He wasn't put on Earth to lead."
Finley isn’t the only teammate of the Packers great to call Rodgers out. WRs Greg Jennings and Donald Driver have also pointed out similar issues, raising questions about his accountability and attitude towards teammates. The issue remains after Aaron Rodgers' recent criticism of Mike Williams and the fallout after the now-Pittsburgh Steelers WR scored a TD on his debut.