"I had never heard of COVID toe before" - Aaron Rodgers calls out WSJ reporter for misinformation about his injury
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is seeking an apology for an article about his toe published in The Wall Street Journal.
At his weekly press conference, Rodgers said he expected a full apology from a woman named Molly Knight and her editor after the disinformation regarding Rodgers' toe.
" I had never heard of Covid toe before," Rodgers said in his press conference. "Pat (McAfee) made a joke about it on the show and I mentioned yesterday that it's worse than a turf toe and it must be a bone issue.
"I can't believe I have to come on the air and talk about my medical information, but yeah I have a fractured toe. I have never heard of COVID toe before, I haven't had leisons on my feet, that's just a classic case of disinformation. That's suprising coming from what used to be a reputable journalistic institution, but that is the world we live in these days," Rodgers finished.
The Packers quarterback was visibly annoyed at the article, which was actually written by Andrew Beaton for The Wall Street Journal. However, there was a case of mistaken identity. Molly Knight, the woman Rodgers mentioned as the writer of the story, had only reshared the article on her Twitter handle.
This led to her account being bombarded with messages. Eventually, Knight posted on her timeline, setting the record straight.
Since there seems to be some confusion: I did not write the Aaron Rodgers Covid toe article. I do not work for the Wall Street Journal. Please stop all this hate. Thank you.
What is COVID toe? Has Aaron Rodgers got it?
Aaron Rodgers was clearly waiting for the COVID-toe question because you can hear him say, “I don’t know if I have room to get my toe up there,” at the start of his press conference.
Here’s his full answer about his fractured toe — with said toe on the screen. https://t.co/hoC2UZTxME
COVID toe is where an individual has swelling and/or discoloration while potentially having blisters, pain and itching. Other people can develop rough skin and raised bumps which can be quite painful.
When the WSJ article suggested that Rodgers might be suffering from a case of COVID toe, the quarterback took exception to it and did not hold back on his feelings, confusing the WSJ journalist's identity with Molly Knight, who according to her Twitter handle is a Los Angeles resident who runs a newsletter called The Long Game:
“That’s actually called disinformation when you perpetuate false information about an individual,” Rodgers said. “I have a fractured toe. So, I expect a full apology from Molly Knight and whoever her editor was. I did get a kick out of reading that article. That was very, very interesting, but I had never heard of COVID toe before."
It appears that Rodgers and his medical status and information are at the top of the media cycle at the moment and are showing no signs of disappearing anytime soon. Meanwhile, Rodgers and the Packers are gearing up to face Matthew Stafford and the LA Rams at Lambeau on Sunday.