Monday, July 28, 2008
Does Anyone Care About Favre Anymore?
Brett Favre has accomplished a lot of things: over 61,000 career-passing yards, 442 regular season touchdowns, 5,377 completed passes, one Super Bowl ring...
...and the ability to make me despise one of the best quarterbacks of my generation.
For a gunslinger, Favre does a lot of wavering back and forth. For the past couple of years, it was between retirement and leading the Packers for another season. As of late, the Gulfport, Mississippi native has thrown into the mix that he wants to keep playing, regardless of the team he'd be commanding down the field.
He's been throwing hissy-fit interviews and venting frustrations on national television and the sports world has eaten it up. FOX News sought after an exclusive interview with Favre and aired an overhyped, nothing-new, two-part "On the Record with Greta Van Susteren" on July 14th and 15th.
The NFL Network has even given way to the BFL Network (Brett Favre Love Network). They're hosting a "32 reasons in 32 days why he should come back" followed by "32 reasons in 32 days why he shouldn't."
My only question is: do we truly care this much about Favre? Is the media reporting on Favre this much because we really care to listen, or does the media only think we care because it's all over every other news outlet?
Because of the exorbitant amount of love being given to Favre from national outlets, Favre Madness is trickling down into the local and regional newspapers and Internet sites as dozens of headlines are popping up every day chronicling this ridiculous saga. I read headlines such as "Jets receive permission to talk with Favre, ESPN says" and "Bucs have permission to talk with Favre, too" and all I can think is that this stuff is backpage material, people. An NFL teams gaining permission to talk to a player is of fourth or fifth-page importance.
For any team wishing to take on Favre's three-year, $39 million contract, I dare you to watch that three-hour breakdown I like to call the 2008 NFC Championship Game? Favre looked old and cold. A favorite sportswriter of mine always said: "If you're not getting younger, you're getting older."
Teams like the Cardinals, Vikings, and Steelers — teams that Favre could fit in — have no use for a quarterback who is past his prime and carries a small salary of what you could be paying six or seven players.
Favre is a smart man; he knows what he is doing in wanting to come back and make the rest of his money. And that's all it is. It's about the money. There's nothing wrong with that, but stop playing the "I'm frustrated with Packers management" card, Brett. You weren't getting Randy Moss last year. You weren't even close. He was going to the Patriots and even took a pay cut to do it.
I have to believe No. 4 cannot be effective anymore, though some will say he is more competitive than ever now.
Cut him, clear this out of Aaron Rodgers' head, and move on, Green Bay.