The marketing strategy for a non-fiction book consists of systematically leaking anecdotes that will move the needle and, in turn, move the merch.
For the upcoming unauthorized biography of Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers from Ian O’Connor, the first nugget related to his regrets over the play that ended his 2023 season. The latest piece delves into his well-publicized family feud.
Via The Daily Mail, O’Connor’s Out of the Darkness: The Mystery of Aaron Rodgers explores the rift that arose between Rodgers and his parents.
The book pins the blame on actress Olivia Munn, who spoke publicly about their sex life in 2014. “Given her devout religious views, Aaron’s mother disapproved of premarital sex and was opposed to her middle child sharing a hotel room with his girlfriend even as an NFL player,” O’Connor writes.
Things went downhill from there, with Ed and Darla Rodgers eventually “sent to the Island,” which is apparently the place to which Rodgers exiles those with whom he has had a falling out.
Along the way, Munn reportedly sent a Christmas gift for Aaron back to Ed and Darla unopened. Per the book, it arrived on Ed’s birthday. That caused Rodgers’s parents to think he had sent Ed a birthday present — until he opened the package.
Rodgers, during his interview with O’Connor for the book, said Munn had “nothing to do” with the tension between Rodgers and his parents.
Via Ryan Glasspiegel of the New York Post, the relationship between Rodgers and his parents was resurrected in 2023. It was sparked by Rodgers spotting Ed in the crowd at the American Century Championship golf tournament at Lake Tahoe. Rodgers considered avoiding his father, but decided in the moment to mend fences.
“I could do a lot of things,” Rodgers told O’Conner. “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.”
That’s the best news from all of this. It had been known for years that Rodgers and his parents had become estranged. It’s great that they found a way to mend fences. (Assuming that the fences remain mended.)
Regardless, life is short, and family is everything. Hopefully, the fact that Rodgers’s and his parents set aside the animosity will inspire others to reach out to the most important people in their lives and find a way to restore a positive and healthy relationship, before it’s too late.