Aaron Rodgers’ Wisconsin fandom is an unusual blessing. Fans of the Packers have seen Rodgers donning his Milwaukee Brewers cap at interviews. Wisconsin fans have watched Rodgers form relationships with the young men on the University of Wisconsin Men’s Basketball team. He is now a part owner of the Milwaukee Bucks. Wisconsin fans might not really understand how fortunate they are to have a sports hero so willing to buy into other local teams.

The Gift of Aaron Rodgers’ Wisconsin Fandom

Endearing Yourself to Fans

One of the most recent cases of an athlete deciding to actively troll their own fan base was the curious case of Damarious Randall. Green Bay Packers fans are clearly familiar with Randall. After Randall was traded to the Cleveland Browns, he quickly went about alienating his new fans.

If the Cleveland Cavaliers win the 2018 NBA finals I’ll buy everyone who retweet’s this a jersey…

— Damarious Randall (@RandallTime) May 29, 2018

With the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, this was a surefire way to cause a small fury. He did recently change his Twitter profile picture to an image of himself wearing a  Cleveland Indians jersey. Maybe he is learning.

Randall’s new teammate, Myles Garrett, went the opposite way. He recently made some statements about Kevin Durant “riding somebody’s coattails“. Taking a swipe at the team that just swept your fans’ favorite team seems to go further.

Your Hometown is Still Your Hometown

As fans, we sometimes lose sight of our favorite athletes being from somewhere else. Recently, Bryce Harper caught a little flak for showing up at a Las Vegas Golden Knights Stanley Cup Finals game in a Las Vegas sweater. Bryce Harper is from Las Vegas and was supporting his local team. This was only an issue because he plays for the Washington Nationals, and the Golden Knights were facing the Washington Capitals. The one point that makes this story more interesting is Harper has been playing in Washington far longer than the Golden Knights have even existed (this was their very first season).

Washington athletes have made several such public appearances. John Wall, of the NBA’s Washington Wizards, was on the sidelines of an NFL game at FedEx Field. This would be pretty normal, but he was on the Dallas Cowboys’ sideline, speaking with Dez Bryant, and wearing a vintage Emmitt Smith jersey.

Embracing the Local Fan

So many fans carry their fandom everywhere they go. Whether it is hearing the “Go Pack Go!” chant at every away game, seeing the black and yellow of Pittsburgh Steelers fans at various stadiums or seeing the Dallas Cowboys jerseys in New York sporting goods stores. Many fans expect that their sports stars must share the same fandom they have. Every athlete is also a person who grew up somewhere with friends and family there. There should be no expectation that they have to check their fandom at the door.

That being said, when players like Aaron Rodgers or J.J. Watt do take an active interest in the other sports teams in their communities, fans should treasure that. Rodgers grew up in California. It would be reasonable for him to wear a San Francisco Giants or Oakland Athletics hat. With the NBA champions residing in Oakland, it would be rather normal for him to support them. Instead, he wears Milwaukee Brewers hats in public and bought into the Bucks ownership group. His interest in the Badgers has been very public for someone who attended a PAC-12 (then the PAC-10) institution. For someone on the outside, remember that Madison, Milwaukee, and Green Bay are all fairly distinct cities, and Aaron Rodgers has embraced a fandom of the teams his local fans love. He did not have to do that. It is, in fact, strange and wonderful.

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