Aaron Rodgers will not play for the New York Jets this season after suffering a torn Achilles tendon on Monday night. And when Green Bay Packers fans were watching the game at a bar named Jack’s American Pub in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, they began cheering when Rodgers went down. And while it’s not a good look, there’s a reason why the fans celebrated Rodgers’ injury.
Jack’s announced last month that it would cover customers’ tabs whenever the Jets lost a game started by Rodgers. In April, Rodgers was traded to the Jets after spending 18 seasons with the Packers. In order for customers to have their tabs paid for, they had to open the tab at least 15 minutes before kickoff. It does not include food, but all drinks are free if Rodgers loses.
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Fans began celebrating when Rodgers went down because they assumed the Jets were going to fall to the Buffalo Bills. However, the Jets won in overtime after Xavier Gipson scored on a punt return, which meant that the customers at Jack’s had to pay for their drinks.
“And the mood has changed considerably,” A.J. Bayatpour of Milwaukee’s CBS 58 said, per Sports Illustrated. “That is because the Jets just won the game on a long touchdown in overtime. Take a look. This is the reaction from a bar where people are realizing the bar tabs they’ve been racking up all night—thinking, certainly with Rodgers hurt, the bar was going to be paying that tab—it is setting in, they are going to have to go to the bar and pay that tab.”
Originally, Jack’s was going to run the promotion for the entire season. But with Rodgers out for the rest of the year, the promotion is over since the 39-year-old quarterback can’t start in any additional games.
When it comes down to it, no NFL fan wants to see Rodgers injured. But the injury does hurt the Packers in terms of their future. When Green Bay sent Rodgers to New York, the team received a conditional draft pick. The Packers will get a second-round pick from the Jets, but if Rodgers played in 65 percent of the Jets’ snaps, the Packers would have received a first-round pick.
