Aaron Rodgers Wants to Be Permanent Host of "Jeopardy!"

Aaron Rodgers began his two-week stint as the guest host of Jeopardy! on Monday night, but the Packers quarterback is hoping it leads to a more permanent gig. While many of the game show’s other guest hosts have been more coy about their desire to replace the late Alex Trebek, Rodgers has come right out and admitted in a new interview with The Ringer that he’d love to stay on, saying, “I’m not shy at all about saying I want the job.”

But before fans in Green Bay start worrying about whether this means the 37-year-old Rodgers is mulling retirement from football, he told the publication he’s confident he would have time to do both.

“I don’t think I’d need to give up football to do it,” he said. “They film 46 days a year. I worked 187 this year in Green Bay. That gives me 178 days to do Jeopardy! So I feel like I could fit 46 into that 178 and make it work. It would be a dream job for sure, and I’m not shy at all about saying I want the job. That’s how I went into it. I want an opportunity to be in the mix.”

Rodgers also did a pretty effective job of pleading his case, pointing out that his youth and his background with the NFL could bring in new audiences to the long-running game show.

“I feel like I bring something different to the stage — I’m the youngest of any of the guest hosts, I’d be the youngest host of just about any major game show, I bring an audience from the NFL, and I feel like I appeal to nerdy people, too, because I was a nerd in high school and got caught in that weird phase of wanting to be a jock and an athlete and also really caring about getting good grades,” he said. “And at the same time, there’s not many bigger fans of the show than me. I’ve been watching it for years and years and years. I respect the show and appreciate the history of it, and also there’s my background of stepping in for a legend and their footsteps. I feel like all that combined makes me a pretty good candidate.”

You can read The Ringer’s full interview with Rodgers about his Jeopardy! hosting gig here.