GREEN BAY -- Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers said Wednesday, October 4th he had friends at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas -- where Stephen Paddock shot and killed at least 59 people and injured more than 500 Sunday night, October 1st.
"It's scary. It's very scary. I woke up at 6:00 that morning and immediately saw the news. Like most of us do, we check our news sites or Twitter and you're just heartbroken for those people," Rodgers said in Green Bay Wednesday.
Rodgers noted friends of his were in Vegas at the concert when the shooting happened.
"I have some ties and connections to Vegas. I have some friends that were there at the venue. You know, it's unthinkable. It's unthinkable that this would continue to happen in our country. You obviously send your prayers thoughts to those people that were affected. A friend of mine lost their best friend of 20 years," Rodgers said.
In Rodgers' position, he's asked about many issues in the world, and he's taken a more outward stance on those this season in particular.
"Just -- it's something that unfortunately we're still having to deal with. We gotta make some changes as a society and hopefully quickly. There's so many situations like this, and we send our thoughts and prayers to these victims, and unfortunately keep having to stand up here and talk about this," Rodgers said. "When you have other people indirectly speak for you in a way that doesn't reflect your feelings, your thoughts, your ideals, your beliefs, your heart, your vision, it makes you want to take back some of the narrative. That's the first part. The second part is we all have a platform, and I think we can use it to the betterment of society at times. There's been a lot of calls to stick to sports, but sports and life intersect in so many ways and when asked questions like this I'm going to answer honestly."
Rodgers said Wednesday he wasn't sure whether the team had any plans to honor the victims Sunday during their matchup vs. the Dallas Cowboys.