Into the Favre Fray

I will attempt to stay away from the sports landscape in this space because there are enough people spewing their opinions on the topic elsewhere. But, this Favre act never ceases to amaze and annoy me.

I will admit, I have never liked Brett Favre. Fantastic quarterback? Absolutely. Gritty competitor? Of course. Overall nice guy? To the media, it would seem so. But, I have never been one to fall in love with athletes or celebrities shoved down my throat.

I've always been fascinated by how athletes are adored. The Monday night game when Favre threw for 4 TDs against a sub-par Raiders team after his father passed away? No question it was difficult, but people deal with their parent's death every day, why in God's name is Brett Favre so wonderful that he received around the clock coverage during his father's illness? Where did this adulation come from?

Well, John Madden is largely to blame. Frank Caliendo has a great skit on Letterman
about the famous broadcaster's sickening adulation for Favre. But as Sal Paolantonio writes, is it even deserved?

Now, much has been written about how the Packers will be a better team with Favre, a potential Super Bowl team with him, and could possibly struggle with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback, but I disagree. First, read Paolantonio's piece about Favre's postseason struggles since a Super Bowl win 11 years ago. You read that right, 11 years ago. Second, how can you blame the Packers? Favre has done this waffling crap the past few seasons, stringing along the Packers and forcing them to wait until after their mini-camps and voluntary team activities to know if they'd have him back or if they would be forced to move on. They had unexpected success in a down year in the NFL (don't agree? How in God's name did a team go undefeated then? And how did Eli Manning win a Super Bowl?) with a young team that Favre said as early as last year wasn't good enough to compete!

The Packers finally have had enough. They are not interested in allowing a player who hasn't delivered a championship in more than a decade, had been in serious decline prior to last season and blasted his young teammates before last season to hold their franchise hostage again. And, unless you have Brady or the elder Manning, the Super Bowl winners since John Elway last won one have been a crapshoot any way.

1998- DEN with John Elway
1999- Ditto
2000-STL with Kurt Warner (where did he come from? and where did he disappear to?)
2001- BAL with Trent Dilfer (This team failed to score a touchdown for a whole month)
2002- NE with Brady (First year starter, soon to be known as one of the all-time greats)
2003- TB with Brad Johnson (Best known for his noodle arm act that Chad Pennington attempts to duplicate)
2004- NE with Brady
2005- NE with Brady
2006- PIT with Ben Roethlisburger (First year starter)
2007- IND with P. Manning (Finally broke through)
2008- NYG with E. Manning (Horribly inconsistent and at times God-awful before catching fire at end of year; made me question validity of NFL, will go down as one of worst QBs to ever get a ring)

The last three winners have been first-timers. Favre had his best chance last season and fell short. It would be unrealistic to believe Favre will improve on last season with an improved Vikings team in the division, and following an aberration of a season based on his past few. The team needed to move on, they did, and it was absurd for Brett to believe he could waltz back in and be welcomed with open arms by people who have been working since March while he was lounging in Mississippi. Go away Brett, we have had enough.