After a nearly decade-long estrangement with his son, Aaron Rodgers’ father, Ed, decided to take things into his own hands.
Last summer, before Aaron, 40, made his ill-fated debut with the New York Jets, Ed bought a ticket to see his son compete in the American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, according to an excerpt from the upcoming book Out of the Darkness: The Mystery of Aaron Rodgers, published in the New York Post on Thursday, August 8.
Ed made the purchase without Aaron’s knowledge, hoping to have an interaction with the son he hadn’t had contact with since 2014.
In the middle of his Saturday round, Aaron spotted his father in the crowd — which left him with a choice.
“I could do a lot of things,” the quarterback recalls in the book. “But I just thought, ‘What’s best in this moment, and what kind of gift could I give him?’ Because I do love him. I don’t have animosity toward him, even with all the stuff that’s been said and done.”
Aaron and Ed have had a fractured relationship for years, with Ed telling The New York Times in 2017 that “fame can change things” and describing his relationship with Aaron as “complicated.” Ed and his wife, Darla, have suggested Aaron’s former girlfriend Olivia Munn was responsible for causing a wedge in the family, which both Aaron and Olivia have denied.
The family feud has also engulfed Aaron’s brothers, Jordan and Luke, both of whom continue to be estranged from the NFL quarterback.
“It had been so long since we even looked at each other,” Ed says in the book of their reunion. “I just kind of froze.”
Aaron was the first to speak, telling his father, “Hi Pops,” before the two embraced.
Ed said they both told each other “I love you” and that he began to cry as his son left to finish his round of golf.
“It was amazing,” he remembers.
Once his round was complete, Aaron recalled telling caddie and longtime friend Jordan Russell, “I think that was what needed to happen.”
Still, their surprise meeting in Lake Tahoe didn’t exactly lead to a long-lasting reconciliation. In the book, Aaron tells author Ian O’Connor that any potential path forward will be dictated by his father.
“It’s just timing, just timing,” Aaron says. “Every time I think it’s getting closer some weird things happen. But I would like a relationship with my dad for sure.”
Out of the Darkness: The Mystery of Aaron Rodgers is available August 20.
