New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers has finally broken his long-held silence about a very public and awkward moment that played out on national television, one that helped expose the deep-rooted rifts within his family. In episode 2 of his Netflix docuseries, Aaron Rodgers: Enigma, the 41-year-old NFL star revisits the now-infamous 2016 incident involving his younger brother Jordan Rodgers and the ABC reality hit, The Bachelorette.
The Incident That Sparked the Fallout
Back in 2016, Aaron was dating actress Olivia Munn, while his younger brother Jordan appeared on Season 12 of The Bachelorette, vying for the heart of JoJo Fletcher. In the final stages of the show, Fletcher visited the Rodgers’ hometown of Chico, California. There, she met with members of the Rodgers family—minus Aaron and Munn, who were conspicuously absent. To make matters worse, the producers deliberately left two empty chairs at the dinner table to represent their absence.
“And what do they do?” Aaron fumed during his Netflix interview. “They go on a bullsh– show and leave two empty chairs. They all agreed this was a good thing to do, to leave two empty chairs at a stupid dating show that my brother just went on to get famous—his words, not mine. That he ended up winning. But a dinner that was during the [football] season, I was never asked to go to. Not that I would’ve gone.”
The pointed detail here is that Aaron, in the midst of his NFL season with the Green Bay Packers, was never consulted about participating in the taping. Even if asked, he admits he wouldn’t have attended given the existing estrangement from his family. Still, the decision to leave those seats open painted a highly visible picture of family division.
A Family Long at Odds
While many fans believed Olivia Munn was the catalyst for the Rodgers family’s issues, Aaron insists otherwise. He told Netflix that the cracks appeared well before his Hollywood relationships and professional success magnified their differences.
“In actuality, it goes back to stuff from high school that kind of made me feel distant. Stuff in college, stuff post-college,” Aaron said, emphasizing that these problems were deeply rooted. Though never “super duper close” with every family member, he recalled being closer to his younger brother Jordan at one time. Their relationship, however, eroded as Aaron’s NFL fame soared and Jordan’s football dreams faltered—Jordan was released from three NFL teams after a brief stint in the league.
For years, Aaron tried the strategy of not publicly addressing the family feud, hoping silence would protect all parties. But by going on The Bachelorette, Jordan brought the issue front and center, making it impossible to ignore. During the show, Jordan told Fletcher: “I have a great relationship with my [older] brother, Luke. Me and Aaron don’t really have much of a relationship,” and implied that this was due to Aaron’s choices and lifestyle as an NFL star.
Their father, Ed Rodgers, also chimed in on the show, hinting that “fame can change you,” a statement seemingly directed at Aaron. These comments only fueled the rumors and speculation swirling around the Rodgers family rift.
Fallout and Misplaced Blame
At the time, many speculated that Olivia Munn, who dated Aaron from 2014 to 2017, played a central role in alienating Aaron from his family.
In 2024, Ed and Aaron’s mother, Darla, made further accusations against Munn in an excerpt from Ian O’Connor’s book, Out of Darkness: The Mystery of Aaron Rodgers. They claimed that before Munn entered the picture, their relationship with Aaron was fine, attending all his games and even staying at his home.
However, Aaron firmly denies that Munn caused the family troubles. He argued that the dysfunction existed long before she arrived, and that it’s “deep-rooted.” He declined to delve into details, maintaining a measure of privacy amid the public scrutiny.
Munn, for her part, moved on and married comedian John Mulaney in 2024. Meanwhile, Jordan Rodgers and JoJo Fletcher eventually tied the knot in 2022, solidifying their reality TV romance into a real-life marriage. Aaron has never married, focusing instead on his NFL career, which led him from Green Bay to a high-profile trade to the New York Jets.
Continuing to Move Forward
Today, the strained family ties remain a sensitive subject, yet Aaron Rodgers: Enigma offered the quarterback a platform to finally express his side of the story. He emphasized that no single relationship or event—certainly not his past romance with Munn—created the schism in the Rodgers clan. Rather, it’s a patchwork of old wounds and unresolved issues dating back to his younger years.
While the empty dinner chairs on The Bachelorette painted a stark portrait of a family at odds, Aaron Rodgers’ reflections in the Netflix docuseries provide crucial context, reminding viewers that what played out on reality TV was merely the tip of a much larger iceberg.
In doing so, Rodgers acknowledges the complexity of family dynamics, celebrity, and personal growth. His family story remains unresolved, but by shedding light on what happened behind the scenes, Rodgers ensures that, at least this time, his perspective on that notorious Bachelorette moment is clearly heard.
