'He was kidding': Internet divided as ESPN apologizes to Jimmy Kimmel for Aaron Rodgers’ 'dumb' Epstein list claims

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: In the aftermath of the Aaron Rodgers-Jimmy Kimmel feud, ESPN has entered into full damage control mode, condemning Rodgers' comments that have ignited the ongoing controversy.

The network issued an apology after Rodgers suggested, without evidence, on 'The Pat McAfee Show' that Jimmy Kimmel was linked to the late convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

ESPN says, 'It should never have happened'

As per the New York Post, in a statement released on January 5 and reported by Front Office Sports, ESPN acknowledged that Rodgers made a "dumb and factually inaccurate joke about Jimmy Kimmel" and emphasized "it should never have happened. We all realized that in the moment.”

During the 'The Pat McAfee Show' on January 2, the highly-paid regular on the show expressed his intention of celebrating with some form of bottle-popping in anticipation of the then yet-to-be-released list of people connected to Jeffrey Epstein.

Hinting at the imminent release of the list, Rogers had stated, "It's supposed to be coming out soon. There's a lot of people, including Jimmy Kimmel, that are really hoping that doesn't come out."

In response, Kimmel launched a scathing attack on Rodgers on X/Twitter, even considering legal action.

'A very serious allegation that then leads to a massive overnight story'

McAfee, who works for ABC under the same parent company, Disney, as ESPN, tried to mitigate Rodgers' comments on the January 3 show.

He attempted to portray it as a joke, emphasizing the longstanding feud between Rodgers and Kimmel.

“There is no formal outline of what we’re going to talk about [and] how we’re going to talk about it,” McAfee said.

“There is no scheduled conversations, there is no scheduled debates, there is no topics for you to think about before you get in there," he continued.

He said, “There is just an opportunity to talk about damn near everything for three and a half hours and in doing so … good times can be had, laughter can be had … and on the flip side, there can be things that are certainly, probably — we’re going to have to hear from Aaron on that — meant to be s–t talk joke that can then become something that is obviously a very serious allegation that then leads to a massive overnight story.”

Interestingly, it appears that neither Rodgers nor McAfee will face any consequences for their involvement in the situation. 

Internet reacts

Following ESPN's apology several users took to social media to express themselves.

One user said, "You can tell he was kidding."

"Aaron Rodgers is 100% right. Jimmy Kimmel's name is mentioned multiple times in the Epstein documents. ESPN owes Aaron Rodgers a public apology. Nothing less will suffice. You don't want to make yourselves the new Bud Light," a user opined.

A user commented, "ESPN is owned by ABC, which is owned by Disney, so of course they will defend their loverboy."

Another user remarked, "Aaron Rogers is accurate about Jimmy Kimmel. He’s definitely been flying on the Lolita Express."

"None of us know the truth, maybe we should just all keep our mouths shut until it's definitive," one user said.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.