Aaron Rodgers’ two-week stint as fill-in “Jeopardy!” host has been a lot of fun to watch. It also has been a boon for needy Northern California businesses.
“Jeopardy!” announced on Friday that a donation of $236,725 will be made to the North Valley Community Foundation, a hub for social change in the area, where Rodgers, a Chico native, grew up.
The amount donated equals the cumulative winnings of the contestants who competed during the two weeks Rodgers served as guest host. The donation will be designated as grants from the Aaron Rodgers Small-Business COVID-19 Fund to help save small businesses that have suffered during the coronavirus pandemic in and around his hometown.
As detailed in a wonderful story in The Athletic, Rodgers, the reigning NFL Most Valuable Player and former Cal standout, recently partnered with the North Valley Community Foundation (NVCF) to create the fund. Rodgers donated $1 million of his own and has helped raise hundreds of thousands more by attaching his name to the cause.
The NVCF has provided grants in different amounts to 80 small businesses in Northern California.
Danielle Marie Ius, a Chico restaurant owner and one of several people quoted in The Athletic piece, said, “The business suffered, but because of Aaron Rodgers, it’s gonna be OK. And I’m just so grateful for him. I’ve cried a lot the last year to people I don’t even know. Rodgers brightened all of our days a little bit.”
It’s good to know that Rodgers hasn’t forgotten his NorCal roots and is using his clout to help folks in need. Meanwhile, how did he fare as “Jeopardy!” host?
We certainly loved it every time he uttered “Go Bears!” — a shoutout to UC Berkeley and the football program he helped boost to national prominence. And judging from most of the critiques we’ve seen, Rodgers, a former “Celebrity Jeopardy!” winner, did a solid job.
Jason Gay of the Wall Street Journal called Rodgers “surprisingly agile.” And Liz Roscher of Yahooo Sports, in an article that read like a detailed, post-game X’s and O’s breakdown, wrote about how he got “noticeably better” over the two-week stretch.
And there were funny moments along the way — like this one, when all three contestants whiffed on an answer involving Rodgers’ own Green Bay Packers (one that is a no-brainer for any diehard NFL fan):
.@AaronRodgers12’s expression says it all. @packers pic.twitter.com/ZV94qASClw
— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) April 13, 2021
And let’s not forget that Final Jeopardy moment on Night 1, in which Rodgers was trolled by a contestant who referenced the ending of the Packers’ NFC Championship game loss. That’s when Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur decided to kick a field goal on fourth-and-goal instead of keeping Rodgers on the field to potentially score a touchdown and possibly tie the game with a two-point conversion.
The contestant to Aaron Rodgers 💀💀💀… and Rodgers agreed with him!! pic.twitter.com/ST5OZtbRms
— Harold R. Kuntz (@HaroldRKuntz3) April 5, 2021
Rodgers completes his “Jeopardy!” run tonight and Anderson Cooper takes over for two weeks starting next Monday (April 19). But there has been some talk that Rodgers might want the gig on a permanent basis. How would that fit in and around his NFL job? Could he do it? Should he do it? Tell us what you think.
Meanwhile, Rodgers Tweeted that he will participate in a live Q&A on Twitter Spaces today at 2 p.m. PT/ 5 pm ET. He’ll look back on his hosting experience and take live questions from fans.
Twitter spaces. Today. With @PatMcAfeeShow talking @Jeopardy today is my last guest host night 😢#
— Aaron Rodgers (@AaronRodgers12) April 16, 2021
