(NewsNation) — New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers has revealed he regrets telling media he was “immunized” against COVID-19 prior to backlash once the public realized he was not vaccinated.

Rodgers was heavily criticized by the majority of sports media for what they believed were misleading comments during an August 2021 press conference.

While with the Green Bay Packers, he was sidelined for 10 days in November after contracting COVID-19; the length of absence required of unvaccinated players.

Once it became clear Rodgers “immunized” admission meant he was not vaccinated, he and the Packers faced intense scrutiny and criticism.

The Jets quarterback told Ian O’Connor that he had appealed to be recognized as vaccinated by the NFL given he had been homeopathically treated.

“If there’s one thing I wish could have gone different, it’s that — because that’s the only thing (critics) could hit me with,” Rodgers told O’Connor in the soon-to-be-released unauthorized biography, “Out of the Darkness: The Mystery of Aaron Rodgers.”

“I had an immunization card from my holistic doctor, which looked similar. I wasn’t trying to pawn it off as a vaccine card, but I said, ‘Listen, here’s my protocol. Here’s what you can follow to look this up.’ And it was an ongoing appeal,” Rodgers said. “So, if I had just said (I was unvaccinated) in the moment, there’s no chance that the appeal would have been handled the exact same way.”

Rodgers’ off-field beliefs and comments have taken greater focus given his lack of playing time in recent seasons. Four snaps into his Jets career, Rodgers suffered an Achilles injury and missed the entirety of the 2024 season.

He is now fully recovered and will start under center for New York at San Francisco in its Week 1 game on Sep. 9 barring unforeseen circumstances.

NewsNation did not receive a copy of O’Connor’s biography on Rodgers.