The company behind Aaron Rodgers’ most prominent endorsement has been mum about how they are handling the Green Bay Packers quarterback’s stance on Covid vaccines, but behind the scenes, new data shows that State Farm reduced the amount of commercials that feature the three-time NFL MVP.
Over the prior two Sundays, State Farm ads run on national networks featuring Rodgers made up around 25% of all ads the company ran, according to data collected by Apex Marketing, which monitors and tracks national media and branding.
This Sunday, there were six State Farm ads that featured Rodgers, as monitored by Apex through 8 p.m. ET, out of a total 394, making up just 1.5% of all ads State Farm ran.
“It appears that State Farm has reduced the number of national spots, dropping off considerably as of Friday,” said Apex president Eric Smallwood. “Our monitoring indicates that this wasn’t a planned reduction and more reactionary because there wasn’t any new significant ads put in its place.”
A State Farm spokesperson told Ad Age that “it would be inappropriate for us to comment on Aaron’s vaccination status.”
The spokesperson also said a new commercial with Terry Bradshaw would appear this weekend. Smallwood’s monitoring service did not pick up any Bradshaw spots.
Rodgers made news this week when he tested positive for Covid. He told the media in August he was immunized, but didn’t clarify that he was not vaccinated.
Rodgers told The Pat McAfee Show on Friday that he did not get the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine because he was allergic to an ingredient, but did not provide further specifics.
He added he didn’t receive the Johnson & Johnson version because the CDC had recommended healthcare providers to pause its administration in April in order to conduct further research into rare blood clots that were found in roughly 0.0007% of women under 50. The findings deemed the vaccine safe.
"I'm not some sort of anti-vax flat-earther,” Rodgers said. “I'm somebody who's a critical thinker. I march to the beat of my own drum. I believe strongly in bodily autonomy. Not to have to acquiesce to some woke culture or some crazed group of individuals.”
Rodgers said he appealed to the NFL, who classified him as unvaccinated, by presenting more than 500 pages of documentation from his team about his homeopathic, holistic treatment which would protect him against the virus.
No other method of immunization is federally approved besides the three vaccines. The NFL denied his plea.
On Saturday, Rodgers lost an endorsement with Wisconsin doctor network Prevea Health, which he has been involved with since 2012.
“Prevea Health remains deeply committed to protecting its patients, staff, providers and communities amidst the Covid-19 pandemic,” the organization said in a statement. “This includes encouraging and helping all eligible populations to become vaccinated against Covid-19 to protect the virus from further significantly impacting lives and livelihoods.”
