The 2024 Aaron Rodgers political campaign seems to have been quite similar to his first season with the New York Jets in that it never really began.
It was reported last that Rodgers, a future Hall of Fame quarterback who suffered a season-ending injury on his first possession with the Jets in September, was being considered as a potential running mate for independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Just days later it was reported that another - perhaps more qualified? - vice presidential candidate had emerged as Kennedy's top choice.
But professional athletes transitioning into politics is not unprecedented. Former Major League Baseball MVP and World Series champion Steve Garvey, a 10-time All-Star who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, is running in the California Senate race.
No athlete has ever made the jump directly to veep, though, let alone begun a political career while still the starting quarterback for an NFL team.
The day after news broke about Rodgers, Steph Curry, the superstar guard for the Golden State Warriors, was asked if he would one day consider running for president, and he didn't rule it out.
So, we might soon be voting for athletes in more than just All-Star games!
And they might have some stiff competition on the ballot from another athlete. Cue the music…
“IF YA SMELLLL WHAT THE ROCK IS COOKIN!”
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson - a football player turned wrestler turned actor turned potential presidential candidate - has also expressed interest in a political career.
Here's a look back at other notable athletes in the United States who have gone from running on a field of play to running for office.
Dave Bing
Dave Bing, the No. 2 pick in the 1966 draft out of Syracuse University, spent nine of his 12 seasons in the NBA with the Detroit Pistons. The Basketball Hall of Famer went on to become the mayor of Detroit from 2008 to 2013.
Bill Bradley
Bill Bradley, the No. 2 pick in the 1965 NBA Draft, won championships with the New York Knicks in 1970 and 1973 during his Hall of Fame career. He represented New Jersey for 18 years in the United States Senate and ran in the 2000 presidential primaries for the Democratic party but lost to Al Gore.
Jim Bunning
Jim Bunning, a pitcher who spent the prime of his 17-year Hall of Fame career with the Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies, won 224 career games, including a perfect game tossed in 1964. He later became a member of the Kentucky Senate and House of Representatives.
Gerald Ford
The only president on the list, Gerald Ford won two national titles with the University of Michigan football team in 1932 and 1933 while playing center, linebacker and long snapper. He received offers to play professionally but elected to coach at Yale while attending law school there. He began serving in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1949 until he became vice president of the United States in 1973 following the resignation of Spiro Agnew. Ford then became president the following year when Richard Nixon resigned in the wake of the Watergate scandal.
Anthony Gonzalez
Anthony Gonzalez was drafted in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts and produced 1,307 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in his five-year career as a wide receiver. He was elected into the Ohio House of Representatives in 2018.
Napoleon Harris
Napoleon Harris was drafted in the first round of the 2002 NFL Draft and went on to play seven seasons as a linebacker for the Oakland Raiders, Minnesota Vikings and Kansas City Chiefs. He has served as an Illinois senator since 2013.
Glenn Jacobs
Glenn Jacobs, a WWE Hall of Fame wrestler known as “Kane,” was elected mayor of Knox County in Tennessee in 2018.
Caitlyn Jenner
Caitlyn Jenner, an Olympic gold-medal winning decathlete in 1976, ran for governor in the 2021 California Recall Election. Jenner, a transgender rights activist, received just one percent of votes.
Kevin Johnson
Kevin Johnson, a three-time NBA All-Star with the Phoenix Suns during his 13-year playing career, was the mayor of Sacramento from 2008 to 2016.
Walter Johnson
Walter Johnson - who as a Hall of Fame pitcher for the Washington Senators between 1907 and 1927 won 417 games, second most in MLB history - won a seat on the Montgomery County Commission in 1938 and campaigned for Congress in 1940.
Jack Kemp
Jack Kemp spent the first season of his professional football career with the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers in 1957 before becoming a star with the AFL’s Buffalo Bills. The seven-time AFL Pro Bowl quarterback led the Bills to championships in 1964 and 1965 and earned Player of the Year honors. He went on to serve as a member of the New York House of Representatives from 1971 to 89, during which he ran in the 1988 presidential primaries for the Republican party. Kemp was the vice presidential nominee as running mate to Bob Dole in the 1996 election, but the duo fell to incumbents Bill Clinton and Al Gore.
Steve Largent
Steve Largent had 13,089 receiving yards and made seven Pro Bowls during his 14-year NFL career with the Seattle Seahawks. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma’s first district in 1994 and was reelected for three additional terms. He ran for Oklahoma governor in 2002 but lost narrowly.
Wayne Messam
Wayne Messam was a wide receiver on Florida State University’s national championship team in 1993 and later signed with the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent, although he never went on to play in the NFL. Elected in Miramar, Florida as city commission and then as mayor, Messam announced a run for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020 but later suspended his campaign.
Burgess Owens
Burgess Owens, a defensive back selected in the first round of the 1973 NFL Draft by the New York Jets, won a Super Bowl with the Oakland Raiders in 1980. He was elected to Congress in 2020.
Jon Runyan
Jon Runyan was a Pro Bowl offensive lineman for the Philadelphia Eagles during his 14-year NFL career. He represented New Jersey in the House of Representatives from 2011 to 2015.
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger is best known for his acting career and lines like “I’ll be back.” Prior to that he was a bodybuilder, winning seven Mr. Olympia competitions. Later in life he went on to serve as governor of California from 2003 to 2011.
Heath Shuler
Heath Shuler was a Heisman Trophy runner-up who was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 1994 NFL Draft by Washionton. He spent four seasons in the NFL and went on to become a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from North Carolina in 2007.
Lynn Swann
Lynn Swann won four Super Bowls as a wide receiver with the Pittsburgh Steelers during his Hall of Fame career, being named MVP of the big game in 1976. President George W. Bush named Swann the chairman of the United States President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports in 2002. Swann ran for Pennsylvania governor in 2006 but fell in the election.
Jesse Ventura
Jesse Ventura served as a U.S. Navy SEAL before going on to have a Hall of Fame wrestling career in the WWE as Jesse “The Body” Ventura. His political career began in 1990 when he was elected mayor of Brooklyn Park in Minnesota, and he went on to serve as governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003. Ventura, like Aaron Rodgers, is a candidate to be running mate for presidential candidate Robert Kennedy Jr.
Herschel Walker
Herschel Walker was a National Champion and Heisman Trophy winning running back at the University of Georgia. He went on to win an MVP award in the USFL before spending 12 seasons in the NFL, becoming a two-time Pro Bowler for the Dallas Cowboys before being dealt to the Minnesota Vikings in one of the biggest trades in league history. The College Football Hall of Famer also competed in the 1992 Olympics as a member of the U.S. bobsled team. Walker unsuccessfully ran in Georgia’s 2022 Senate race.
