It is widely speculated that New York Jets star quarterback Aaron Rodgers played a role in the firing of head coach Robert Saleh, but Rodgers did his best to silence that assumption.

The Jets fired Saleh on Tuesday, apparently shortly after he made the decision to strip offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, who has long been linked to Rodgers, of play-calling duties.

Hackett was Rodgers’ offensive coordinator in Green Bay from 2019 to 2021, reviving the quarterback’s career. Rodgers won the league’s MVP award in 2020 and 2021. The Jets hired Hackett shortly before trading for Rodgers, apparently to lure him to New York.

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New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (right) claims he had nothing to do with the firing of head coach Robert Saleh, but ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith (left) doesn’t entirely believe his story. (IMAGN/Getty Images)

Many football fans have tried to make sense of the situation, but Jets owner Woody Johnson said it was entirely his decision and Rodgers “resented” the “ridiculous allegations” that he played a role in Saleh’s firing, which he called ” obviously “denoted WRONG.”

But Stephen A. Smith still believes something is fishy. In fact, Smith says Rodgers may be beating around the bush.

“If you’re Aaron Rodgers, yeah, you didn’t walk into the office and say, ‘I want him fired.’ “They didn’t go into the office and say, ‘I want him out.’ That may be true,” Smith said. “But don’t act like you had no idea what was going on, what the tenor of the situation was, how things were falling apart before our eyes, and that the owner was oblivious to all of these things.”

“And somehow, someway, when you were all on the phone together, you were all talking about the chocolate chip cookies and the milk you were drinking,” he joked.

Jets head coach Robert Saleh as the Jets’ Aaron Rodgers leaves the field in the first half as the Denver Broncos defeated the New York Jets 10-9 at MetLife Stadium. (Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com/USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

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“Just stop this nonsense. It’s amazing how difficult it is for people to simply tell the truth. It’s not that we’re completely clueless and don’t know what the hell is going on. And when Aaron Rodgers tried to give that impression, I think the credibility factor was lost.”

Rodgers appeared to be deceptive before, once telling reporters he was “immunized” against COVID-19 when asked if he had been vaccinated. He has regretted it ever since.

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks on before the game against the Minnesota Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in Tottenham, England, on Sunday. (Shaun Brooks-Imagn Images)

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Saleh was released Tuesday morning after more than three seasons with the Jets. New York is off to a 2-3 start after two losses, but has a chance to take first place in the division with a win Monday night over New York Buffalo Bills.

Fox News’ Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.

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