Aaron Rodgers is telling his side of his breakup with Danica Patrick, and he isn’t exactly remembering the relationship fondly.
During Thursday’s episode of the Not Just Football podcast, the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback pushed back against Patrick’s previous claims about their relationship while revealing some decidedly private details.
“I dated Danica. She had just retired. She was depressed and not fun to be around, but I didn’t leave her because I was trying to be there and be a good partner,” Rodgers said.
Then he got considerably more personal.
“There was no intimacy. There was nothing,” Rodgers said, adding that Patrick wanted them to purchase a Malibu home together and he declined.
Rodgers and Patrick dated for more than two years before splitting in July 2020. Patrick later described the relationship as “emotionally abusive,” saying during a 2025 interview that it “wore me down to nothing” and that Rodgers “leaves a trail of blood.”
Rodgers strongly disputed that characterization.
“She tells a story that, ‘I was so blindsided by getting left by you, and he leaves a trail of blood around,'” Rodgers said. “I’m like, what are you talking about? That is not what happened by any means.”
Rodgers also revealed that he had met his now-wife, Brittani, before dating Patrick and regretted not asking her to stay when she moved to Europe.
He said that regret contributed to him being “emotionally unavailable” for years afterward.
So, yeah. Apparently there was quite a bit more happening behind the scenes than anyone knew.
The Steelers open the NFL season Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons.
