13 October 2023 , 18:10
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The reporter who revealed that Aaron Rodgers gets paid over $1 million (£820,000) to appear on "The Pat McAfee Show" has been called a "rat" by the host.
A story by Andrew Marchand in the New York Post claimed that Rodgers is paid very well by McAfee to appear on his show every Tuesday, earning approximately $1 million a year for just an hour of time per week. McAfee had credited the New York Jets quarterback with adding significant value to his company, claiming it's now worth 100 times more than it once was.
However, while McAfee has been open to rewarding Rodgers, he was not happy to hear that a chat with the reporter led to the information being published. McAfee called him a "rat" on a recent episode of his show, and Marchand responded.
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"I appreciate the people that think they're killing me right now for this. But if this is what I'm known for, I'm OK with it," McAfee said. "With that being said, Andrew Marchand is a rat, OK? That is what he is.
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"He tried to paint this in a way that makes me look like a bad person. And it's like, you're the bad person, And hopefully other people will have to pay people for their time at some point as well.
"Sorry, I've ruined your little gimmick of 'You're lucky to get a talk and make our lives a lot easier,' if that's what it is. But I am not embarrassed or ashamed of that at all. At all."
Marchand defended both his story and McAfee's decision to pay Rodgers, stating that although it's usually frowned upon for journalists to pay for interviews, it's also been done countless times for major sporting stars. Marchand explained that former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning was paid around $125,000 (£103,000) to appear for 20 minutes on WFAN.
McAfee's payment may exceed that by some distance, but Rodgers has added huge value to his brand. McAfee ended his relationship with FanDuel to sign with ESPN and was able to negotiate complete control and keep his production company.
The host also claims that his company was worth between $2-5 million, but is now valued at over $500 million. The $1 million to Rodgers appears to be a very shrewd investment, but McAfee is still unhappy that the story was leaked after he received major backlash for "buying views" from fans.