Sometimes the drama surrounding Aaron Rodgers can draw attention from all the great memories he and so many others made during his 18 seasons in Green Bay. With a final pre-season matchup against his former team beginning his retirement tour, Rodgers reflected on what he was most thankful for during his career, which spoke to a deeper truth about his time in Wisconsin.
His response wasn't about fame, fortune, glory, or the accomplishments of his first-ballot Hall of Fame career. It was about the people and memories made along the way:
Aaron Rodgers at his finest when asked about what he’s most thankful for in his career: pic.twitter.com/6axgjudqby
— Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) August 12, 2026
"So many great people that I got to meet over the years that [I] never would've met without this game, that I still consider friends. And then obviously all of the teammates I had over the years who had such a big impact on my life," Rodgers said to a selection of Green Bay media members. "If you miss out on the relationships in this game, you're kind of missing the whole gist of what we're actually doing."
From referees to coaches, teammates to personnel, media members, people in the Green Bay community, and everyone in between, the thing that Aaron Rodgers will take away from his time in the NFL speaks to what makes the Packers such a deep-rooted, meaningful institution. The togetherness, the community, the camaraderie. The Packers have captured lightning in a bottle in a way that so many other sports organizations never have, yet continue to aspire to.
But that doesn't stop at Green Bay, but speaks to something much deeper about Wisconsin and its relationship to sports.
From Aaron Rodgers to Giannis Antetokounmpo, Wisconsin's one-of-one sports culture has always been about more than a game.
Be warned: this story is about to switch to the first-person. I'm going to take a moment to tell you about how I, and so many others, can relate to Aaron Rodgers' time in Wisconsin.
It's been about four years since I moved to Wisconsin after spending the previous decade bouncing around the country. Everywhere I've been, I immersed myself in the sports culture because it's a part of who I am, and connecting with people through sports is one of the easiest ways to build community. Every region treats its relationship with sports a little bit differently, but from coast to coast, up in the northeast and down to the southwest, I've never experienced anything like the sports culture of Wisconsin before.
In general, Wisconsin's sports fans — of which there are many — are warm, welcoming, and fun-loving fans who always have a take to share. They relate to people in a more personable manner than in other parts of the country, aren't afraid to joke around at the expense of themselves and others, and lots of the time, use sports as a means of making a connection with other people, whether it's someone they've known their whole lives or just met.
In turn, sports were a big part of how Wisconsin went from the place where I lived to my home. And I'm far from the only person who can speak to that. Clearly, Aaron Rodgers felt the same way about his time here. We've heard plenty about it from Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has been publicly emotional about the experience of moving away from Wisconsin. Or from Christian Yelich, a California native who decided that Milwaukee was his home after starting his career under the bright lights of Miami.
The point is, it doesn't matter if you're from California, Athens, New York, or anywhere else — the sports culture and devotion of Wisconsin sports fans is unlike anything else in the world. So yes, sometimes sports will rip our hearts out or cause more stress than excitement, but don't lose sight of what it's really about, as Aaron Rodgers so eloquently stated:
"The thing that really lasts the longest is those people that impacted your life," Rodgers said. "I met a lot of those, especially in Green Bay, that had a huge impact on my life. So I think about those people."
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