Column: Hub Arkush isn’t ‘a bum,’ but his thoughts on Aaron Rodgers’ MVP candidacy were wrong — and he should recuse himself from voting

Green Bay Packers backmost Aaron Rodgers is simply a virtual fastener for the NFL’s Most Valuable Player grant — and a deserving 1 astatine that.

Hub Arkush is an NFL adept who works retired of Chicago, penning for Pro Football Weekly and the Daily Herald and lending his expertise to WSCR-AM 670, wherever he’s known for having beardown opinions connected each things Bears.

It’s hard to ideate Arkush getting caught up successful the mediate of a vintage Rodgers controversy, but determination helium was Wednesday, trying to excavation himself retired of a self-made spread portion the Packers backmost assailed his credibility and called him “a bum.”

It’s already well-established that Rodgers owns Bears fans. Now we tin corroborate the Packers prima besides owns Arkush.

The latest successful a bid of Rodgers-centric controversies began Tuesday, erstwhile Arkush said connected the Score’s “Parkins & Spiegel Show” that helium couldn’t formed his MVP ballot for Rodgers, calling retired the backmost for his summertime indecision astir whether to play and his determination not to get vaccinated. Rodgers missed a crippled against the Kansas City Chiefs, which the Packers lost, aft investigating affirmative for COVID-19.

Arkush made it personal, sounding much similar Joe from Cicero connected Line 1 than a seasoned NFL writer who has been astir agelong capable to merit an MVP vote.

“I don’t deliberation you tin beryllium the biggest jerk successful the league and punish your squad and your enactment and your instrumentality basal the mode helium did and beryllium the Most Valuable Player,” Arkush said. “Has helium been the astir invaluable connected the field? Yeah, you could marque that argument, but I don’t deliberation helium is intelligibly that overmuch much invaluable than Jonathan Taylor oregon Cooper Kupp oregon adjacent Tom Brady.”

Rodgers intelligibly is much invaluable than Taylor oregon Kupp, and the statement implicit Rodgers versus Brady seems to beryllium implicit arsenic well. But the constituent is you can’t spell astir calling an MVP campaigner a “jerk” and accidental you’re not voting for him if you so person a vote.

Arkush admitted Tuesday that “from wherever I sit, the remainder of it is wherefore he’s not going to beryllium my choice.” That was mistake No. 1. He yet added: “One of the ways we get to support being voters is we’re not allowed to accidental who we are voting for until aft the grant has been announced. I’m astir apt pushing the envelope by saying who I’m not voting for. But we’re not truly expected to uncover our votes.”

Uh, yeah.

Arkush seemingly believed helium was getting astir the regularisation by revealing lone who helium wasn’t voting for. But immoderate helium was thinking, helium present needs to bash the close happening and recuse himself from this year’s election, turning implicit his ballot to different deserving writer earlier it’s excessively late.

Then fto the Associated Press determine whether helium should beryllium allowed to ballot again successful the future.

By Wednesday Arkush admitted helium was wrong to speech astir it and should’ve kept his rima shut. He didn’t instrumentality backmost his reasoning for not casting a ballot for Rodgers but said helium “screwed up” by mentioning it connected the air. He besides apologized to Rodgers successful a file and said helium “would emotion to beryllium capable to explicate what I meant to accidental and butchered truthful badly,” but helium didn’t privation to adhd to the story.

But by past it was excessively late. Once those remarks deed the internet, Arkush was toast. And erstwhile Rodgers got a accidental to respond, Arkush saw himself trending connected Twitter.

“I deliberation he’s a bum,” Rodgers said. “I deliberation he’s an implicit bum. He doesn’t cognize me. I don’t cognize who helium is. No 1 knew who helium was astir apt until yesterday’s comments. I mean … to accidental helium had his caput made up successful the summertime, successful the offseason, that I had zero accidental of winning MVP, (in) my sentiment should exclude aboriginal votes.

“His occupation isn’t with maine being a atrocious feline oregon the biggest jerk successful the league due to the fact that helium doesn’t cognize me. Doesn’t cognize me. Doesn’t cognize thing astir me.”

Rodgers accused Arkush of being connected a vendetta implicit the quarterback’s vaccine stance, saying: “If helium wants to spell connected a crusade and collude and travel up with an other missive to enactment connected the grant conscionable for this play and marque it the Most Valuable Vaccinated Player, past helium should bash that. But he’s a bum. And I’m not going to discarded immoderate other clip reasoning astir that stuff.”

Many Bears fans assuredly consciousness the aforesaid mode astir Rodgers arsenic Arkush, but fortunately they don’t get an MVP vote. Because helium is 1 of the chosen fewer who decides the MVP, Arkush’s lone occupation is to look astatine the candidates’ show connected the tract and marque a determination based connected that. Rodgers’s vaccine stance is irrelevant successful this matter.

Even if Rodgers has turned into 1 of the astir unlikable athletes successful sports, you person to springiness the antheral his due.

Arkush should cognize better.