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Is Brett Favre's Legacy Tarnished?
For those of us who do not live
in Wisconsin sometimes we get the impression that Lambeau Field is less a
stadium than a shrine. They love their Packers. This is a highly
emotional and sensitive issue for many a Packer fan. It gets more and
more emotional the closer you get to the epicenter located in Green Bay.
Let it be understood that I am a Brett Favre fan. He is a ball player. I like ball players. He is a winner. I like
winners. He will go down as one of the great quarterbacks in the history of the game.
I have always respected him especially since his battle with addiction to prescription drugs. He handled that situation
with dignity, class and most importantly honesty.
Not being from the state of Wisconsin I am not inundated with information about the circumstances
of this ordeal. Perhaps this will make me less biased if not fully informed
of the details.
I was in fact a little surprised that he retired this spring. He is a competitor and after last year's season he had more
than proven that he was still competitive. Going out on a good note may be an attractive proposition for some
but I honestly
thought they were going to have to drag Favre off of the field.
I do believe he was pressured to make a decision before the draft. The organization needed to make plans for their future.
They took action based upon the fact that Favre was retiring. That is where this whole thing gets tricky.
When Favre decided he still wanted to play he had time left on his contract.
These two factors pose a problem for the Packers organization.
I think Favre understands that. Even so there has been jabs thrown at both parties to this dispute.
The fact is that Favre still wants to play. He changed his mind.
The rest of us are allowed to do this. I do not believe for a second
that this was a planned move.
It is up to the Packers to decide where to go from here. If they want to start
a new era in their franchise then cut him loose gracefully.
The issue of Favre's legacy goes above right and wrong.
Irregardless of whether Favre made a mistake by declaring his retirement a little early he will always be loved in Green Bay.
There will be some that will look at him a little differently after this incident. But there will be very few who would
not be thrilled if they were able to walk up and shake his hand.
I opened this article by stating that Brett Favre was a ball player. True fans enjoy watching people who enjoy playing the
game. It really is about the game for most of us. What is going on right now is business. When business takes front and
center over the game then it leaves us with a bad taste in our mouth.
That does go away. It will go away.
One final note. Favre's number was to be retired at the first Packers game of the season. The Packers have announced that
they might be holding off on that.
I think that is fair. Typically the person must truly retire before their number does. Michael Jordan is a notable exception.
His number should be retired. It should be done with all the fanfare that Favre
truly deserves. If they do wait until he gets this so called "itch" out of
his system, whether it be one year or three years down the road, it will
allow a certain amount of time and distance from this current situation.
Time to forget and forgive if necessary.
Do not get rid of the green and yellow ticker tape, just put it on a shelf until Favre decides to put his cleats on the shelf
for the last time.
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