I was always waiting – hoping – that he’d go on a tear that would shake him out of his slump. Always looking for Brett Favre to improvise a wild scramble-wild throw to a receiver to change the momentum of – or win - the game. It never really happened.
Too many times while watching Favre this season I had terrible flashbacks to when I was a kid watching Joe Namath struggle through the last games of his career. Not only did Namath have to struggle physically through his last seasons – heck he came into the league with a ruined knee that diminished his effectiveness – he had to struggle in those awful blue-and-gold uniforms worn by the L.A. Rams, which made his demise that much sadder to witness.
Granted, Favre seems to be physically healthy enough to continue, but is that enough? Is he still mentally able to withstand the rigors of the game? This is not meant to insult Favre but to ask a valid question that arises in response to watching him play this season. Favre made bad decisions on a regular basis, and these bad decisions outnumbered the good decisions, if not in actual number than by the impact on his team.
Taking into consideration the coaching situation of the Packers – they don’t have one yet – and the prospect of Favre having to learn a new system under a new staff, now seems to be the right time for him to leave the game and start the clock ticking for his eligibility into the Hall of Fame. And for the love of Pete, I hope he doesn’t decide to sign on elsewhere to finish his career as a back up or a starter.
Can anyone actually picture Favre in another uniform? The Bengals? The Raiders? The Ravens? The Jets? The Jets….hmmm, well the Jets uniforms are mostly green and the Jets do need a quarterback…but back to reality.
For his own good, I’d like to see Favre retire. But if for some reason Favre does decide to come back, I’ll be pulling for him as hard as anyone who is actually sitting in the stands at Lambeau Field…or Giants Stadium.
So what do you think?
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Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Matthew T. Sussman
He could leave now and say he won his final game. New coach, new quarterback? Makes sense to me. But only he can decide this.
2 - gonzo marx
i would hate to see him go after such a season as he had, i would have liked him to go out on a high note
and of course, the final decision will be his
but it is a tuff call, as a fan of the Game, the only thing i can see that lends to him continuing was the Miracle of a Flutie drop kick
but Favre ain't the kind of guy to do that kind of career, he is/was one of the true Greats on the field
let him retire and become the Q-back coach in green bay
yeah..that tastes about right
Excelsior!
3 - RJ Elliott
He should retire, and I think he will. But what's the worst that could happen if he tries another season? The Packers go 4-12 again?
This year was so bad, I don't think it's possible for next year to be any worse...so if he comes back for one more season, that means he is pretty much destined to end on a relatively high note...
4 - TylerNewton
Brett Favre should be shot. Seriously.
Brett Favre is the most OVERRATED quarterback in the HISTORY of the NFL. The guy can have game after game where he'll throw 5 INTERCEPTIONS, all his fault, but people STILL sing his praises.
The guy's dad DIES and then he plays a game the next day. HOW DISRESPECTFUL IS THAT??? But again, nobody questioned Favre when he played although he should have been paying his respects.
Brett Favre has had 3 seasons (Seasons where he played a full season) where he had more picks than TD's. By contrast, Steve Young only had ONE season where he had more picks than TD's in a full season, and that was when he played with TB. Yet Favre is even mentioned in the same breath as Steve Young?????
EVERY YEAR OF FAVRE'S CAREER that he was a starter HE'S HAD DOUBLE DIGIT INTERCEPTIONS. By contrast, only 5 of Steve Young's full seasons had double digit picks, and one of those was TB. BUT FAVRE IS MENTIONED IN THE SAME BREATH AS YOUNG.
I'm not trying to turn this into Favre vs. Young, but simply point out how overrated Favre has been his whole career. I can't believe the love affair with Favre through the 90's and 00's. His ENTIRE career is marked with him always trying to force the ball into his receivers. Sometimes it worked, MANY times it didn't. If anyone else had Favre-like pick numbers, they would be booed all the way to Arena Football. But Brett Favre??? Oh no, he's a hero. PATHETIC. ABSOLUTELY PATHETIC.
P.S. Favre had 20+ picks FIVE times in his career, including 29 in 2005. Young never had 20 or more. Neither did Aikman.
5 - Matthew T. Sussman
Oh snap.
Who wants to rebut? Any takers? Should I?
6 - sal m
i find it hard to take your "argument" seriously - any argument, for that matter - that starts off with a premise such as yours. actually, what you've provided is more an insult and an unsupportable statement than it is a premise.
you wander from point to point, and don't make any point at all.
without knowing what the Favre family is all about how can you call his decision to play in a game - and do his job - the day after his dad died, disrespecful?
Favre resurrected the Green Bay franchise almost single handedly. he has had good years and bad years, as most quarterbacks have had. he never had the luxury of stepping into a huddle that was populated with the all-pro/hall of fame caliber players that steve young had with the 49'ers.
Young is an all-time great, but operated under some of the best conditions any quarterback has ever had in the NFL. he stepped in and took over a super bowl caliber team.
when arguing the relative merits of athletes in any sport there is no need to disparage one athlete at the expense of another, as you have done here.
by making the comments that you've made here, you just sound silly and uninformed.
your turn, suss...
7 - RJ Elliott
This is too easy...
Brett Favre's career stats:
- NFL MVP 3 times (an NFL record)
- 2nd in NFL history in TDs thrown
- 3rd in NFL history in yards thrown for
- 225 consecutive starts (if you count the playoffs) at QB, an NFL record
- 1 Super Bowl ring
I mean, he wasn't the best QB ever (though some would agrue he was), but he was a great QB nonetheless...
8 - TylerNewton
Funny how:
1.) No one address my issue with his plethora of interceptions throughout his whole career.
and
2.) No one mentioned that he is the only QB in the HISTORY OF THE NFL to still be considered GOD, especially by the media, even if he throws 5 PICKS a GAME week in and week out.
Please address these valid points. Thanks.
9 - sal m
1) um, he threw a lot of interceptions this year ...a lot of great qb's have thrown a lot of interceptions at points during their career and still made the hall...just like a lot of power hitters strike out a lot.
throwing interceptions has never disqualified anyone from making the hall, nor has striking out.
2)i've never heard of anyone address him as LORD or GOD, with the exception of hard-core green bay fans. i don't think i've ever heard an announcer during a game call him god, lord, messiah, or even deity.
and since you've said that he throws 5 picks a game, why don't you provide the stats to back this absurd statement.
he's actually thrown 255 picks in 15 seasons which works out to be 17/season, or about 1/game. he's also thrown for 396 td's. steve young, by comparison, had 232 td's.
you can stop talking now....
10 - Matthew T. Sussman
I was gonna get on this, and I never did. No time like now to start:
There is a pitcher who holds the record for most career walks, career wild pitches, and ranks third in career losses.
Boy, that guy's gotta suck!
That guy's Nolan Ryan.
Yes, he threw a lot of interceptions. You'll have that when you throw a lot of passes. And Brett Favre is that guy.
Yes, he throws a lot of interceptions.
He holds the record for most 3,000 yard seasons (14)
He's 2nd all time in touchdowns thrown (Marino)
2nd all time in consecutive games with a touchdown (Unitas)
3rd all time in pass attempts (Elway, Marino)
2nd all time in pass completions (Marino)
2nd all time in passing yards (Marino)
And heck, I wouldn't be surprised if he's thrown more interceptions than anyone else. But there's more to a game than interceptions. It's about touchdowns, points, wins, losses and championships. (Throw in a secret blend of herbs and intangibles and you've got yourself a superstar player)
And granted, Marino is better statistically (and probably the better quarterback), but who has more Super Bowl rings?
11 - RJ Elliott
"No one mentioned that he is the only QB in the HISTORY OF THE NFL to still be considered GOD, especially by the media, even if he throws 5 PICKS a GAME week in and week out."
First of all, I don't think anyone has claimed that Favre is the second-coming of Jesus Christ...
Second, he does NOT throw "5 picks a game week in and week out." If that was the case, he would have 80 INTs per year. Which he doesn't.
He throws about 1 INT per game, on average, over his career. Let's try to deal with reality, shall we?
12 - sal m
and by the way, it looks like he'll be staying around since green bay has brought in a head coach who has a history with brett...i'm sure we'll hear about favre's decision sooner rather than later.
13 - Packer Girl
To those of you bashing Favre.....it all depends on what defines a "great" quarterback. When you look at Marino, yeah he has almost every passing record there is except for a select few, but did he ever win the big one? no! can he move around in the pocket? no! did he win 3 straight MVP's? no! When you compare Favre to Young, they are two completely different quarterbacks. Young was basically a tailback in a quarterbacks body and Favre is a gunslinger, he likes to take chances. He may not be as accurate when he throws into tight places. But it's not uncommon for him to make tight throws into tight places and make great plays. He takes more risks than your average quarterback, therefore he might have more interceptions than your average quarterback. If I was a head coach and I had a game winning drive with 57 seconds left on the clock, Favre is who I'd want as quarterback, not Marino or Young. Even non-Green Bay fans recognize the skill and greatness Favre has. No one can deny that HE IS the NFL ironman...with OVER 230 CONSECUTIVE STARTS as a quaterback.....even when his father passed away..his way of paying RESPECT to his father was playing that night....which is what his father would want, I'm sure. Whatever Favre's choice is....I respect it. As a Packer fan, Green Bay won't ever be the same without him, I just respect everything he's done for his team, his fans and the NFL. Favre is a guy that every player in the NFL respects. Kudos to Favre!
14 - billyboy
I would agree Favre does always seem to get sort of a "free" pass when it comes to him making mistakes, but that right there is why I think he is such an awesome player. He has that "it factor". He didn't ask for that so called "free Pass", he is quiet, not a limelight kind of guy, never was, but he somehow by his play, drive, incredible passion ended up with this sort of special "pass card" so to speak when it comes to him making mistakes. How can you be mad at Favre for whatever reason, getting that sort of free pass? It's not like he ever asked for it, the media, if anyone gave that to him. This year especially, the guy had NO TEAM, NADA... this is not an excuse, no starting running back, receiver, hurt center, the list goes on. My other point is do you ever notice the way other nfl players, especially star players act when they see Favre? They know this guy is something very special, you can see the way they act after a game, and its ALWAYS been like that. Other players go out of their way to greet him. Do you also ever notice how no one especially NFL players ever say anything bad about #4. He has that "it" or intangible trait that can't be measured or touched, Fave just has it, and everyone knows it. The guy will be truly missed when he does officially hang it up,..one more year Favre!! Number 4 all the way!!!
15 - sal m
billyboy and packer girl, two great posts...and packer girl, i think only one person was giving favre a hard time, and he can't be taken seriously because his posts were irrational.
and billy boy, great observation about how favre never asked for or seems to expect special treatment from anyone. compare favre's behavior in response to his bad performances to what peyton manning did last weekend when he blamed his offensive line for HIS troubles.
16 - billyboy
Great point sal m, I have NEVER heard Favre call out his offensive line or specifically any one player, granted he has for the most part had pretty good offensive lines and very good protection for the most part of his career. The Manning little "dig" so to speak about his offensive line not giving him great protection during the Steeler game was kind of cheap or low. Look at the the issues and problems Brett has had this past year, and not once during his interviews after each game did he come out and blame anyone in particular, or call out his offensive line. Favre always pretty much blamed himself. The reality of it is actually, if he really wanted too, he could have called out his offensive line, because there were many games this year where he really did have pretty bad protection, but not a word from Favre calling out any of his players. I can understand how you might not like a certain team, I can't stand the Vikings, and can totally understand if there are fans out there that hate the Green Bay Packers, but I just can't understand that even if your not a Packer fan, how you can't respect the hell out of Number 4! I don't get that at all. It's not like Favre is a show off or a hot head, he goes out and lays it out every Sunday at 125% all the time. The guy who said Favre should be SHOT doesn't get it. He either isn't a real true football fan, or just follows his own 1 team he roots for. In conclusion, I truly think Favre gets a "Free Pass" sometimes is because of the way he plays, or has always played. Other players and coaches know he is the posterchild for what a true NFL PLAYER should be. That is why number 4 gets so much darn respect from everyone. One more year Favre!!! Number 4 !!! In reference to a sports "God" so to speak, who else could really be considered in that sort of a compliment? Number 4? Maybe!!
17 - Packer Girl
I forgot to mention his hurt team. I agree strongly that if all the starters were on the field, we'd be seeing the Packers going to the play-offs, not the Bears. It's not his fault his receivers got hurt and his running backs got hurt. They are called starters for a reason, because they are better than the rest....besides Gado and a few others'....who stepped up big time.
18 - Not Really David M. Brown
"i think only one person was giving favre a hard time, and he can't be taken seriously because his posts were irrational."
I think you are mistaken, because there are many of us who strongly feel that Favre is the most overrated QB of all time. It's just the other guy (Tyler Newton) had the guts to come this blog and discuss it.
I did not see anyone counter his point re: Favre' style. His entire career he is always forcing the ball into receivers. Many times this cost him games, playoffs, etc. Nobody has addressed it. No other great QB spent their entire career (Even at the peak), trying to force the ball into receivers that were not open.
The media thing is a legit point. He has always gotten a "Free pass" as someone called it here. No other QB gets this free pass, but that does NOT, I repeat NOT, make him special.
It makes him overrated. Extremely overrated.
Also, this season Brett Favre publicly said that he wouldn't help/train/mentor Aaron Rodgers. He said that he didn't want to help/train/mentor his replacement. I've never heard a QB, especially a revered QB, say this. Total classLESS guy right there.
"I have NEVER heard Favre call out his offensive line or specifically any one player, granted he has for the most part had pretty good offensive lines and very good protection for the most part of his career."
Ever watched a Green Bay game in the Favre era. Each and every botched offensive play, Favre is yelling at someone. Maybe's it's an o-lineman. Maybe it's a WR. Maybe's it's a ref. But it's never himself. Favre can do no wrong even in his own eyes. When he tries to force a pass into a receiver that isn't open, and the ball is easily intercepted, Favre openly yells at the receiver. Let's pull up game tape over the last 10 years and I can't point out so many examples. Just because he doesn't take it to the media doesn't mean anything. On the field, he never ever accepts responsibility for his own actions.
I am actually surprised he is so well thought of in Green Bay. I would think Packer fans would be the ones bringing up what I have said and what Tyler Newton said. After all, it's their team and Green Bay has only one won Super Bowl in the Favre era, and that was because they had a good TEAM back then, not because of him.
19 - sal m
you say you feel he his extremely overrated and that he has forced the ball to his receivers over the years...well the stats just don't bear you out on that one. and he has thrown for over 50,000 yards and 396 TD passes in his career, so if as you say he's forced the ball into his receivers it's worked pretty well for him.
with regards to him calling out his offensive linemen, there is a huge difference between yelling at guys on the field and saying in a press conference that you don't want to be a bad teammate but...effective quarterbacks and leaders on the field - on both sides of the ball - yell at their teammates when they screw up. that's the nature of the game. and your assertion that favre did this "each and every botched offensive play" is ridiculous.
you wrote,
"Also, this season Brett Favre publicly said that he wouldn't help/train/mentor Aaron Rodgers. He said that he didn't want to help/train/mentor his replacement. I've never heard a QB, especially a revered QB, say this. Total classLESS guy right there."
you are incorrect in this reference. favre was asked about rodgers holding out, and he responded that it wasn't his job to tell the kid to get his butt into camp. he never said he wouldn't mentor his eventual replacement.
so a second person has stated that brett favre is overrated, cannot provide statistics to back up the assertion, and makes claims that are incorrect and exaggerated. you don't exactly make your case.
20 - Matthew T. Sussman
He has always gotten a "Free pass" as someone called it here. No other QB gets this free pass, but that does NOT, I repeat NOT, make him special.
Nuh-uh.
Donovan McNabb.
If anyone thinks of criticizing him, then they think that they're agreeing with Rush Limbaugh and blame someone else. (This, by the way, is the opposite of the truth.)
21 - billyboy
Davis M. Brown, you should read the whole post before you try to state your opinion. I said Favre does seem to get a somewhat "free" pass when it comes to mistakes, but as I stated, Favre never asked for this so called "free" pass. The flippin media gave it to him. How is that his Fault? The guy forces balls, he's got over 395 touchdowns for his career. Do you ever see how reved up he gets after a great play? Also, when you are on the field during an actual game, players are always yelling at each other, Favre included. But.... he does not rip on his players in press conferences, unlike Manning. There is a big difference! Why so bitter at #4? I don't get you man! You know it and I know how Favre is in simple words a "football player". Whether you like the Packers or not, How you seem to not respect the guy is beyond me! He gives it. Davis M brown, I am curious to see how would you rate Favre on the whole? Where would you rank him in regards to all time? Are his numbers just a fluke? Why do you think the media puts Favre in such high standards$ I am curious to hear your response. Great topic!!
22 - Packer Girl
I really love to see people talk about how Favre is so "overrated" when he holds 2nd, 3rd and some 1st places in lots of different categories such as passing yds, passing tds etc..Overrated quarterbacks are more or less "wanna be's" - they think they're good because they have one good game or one good season, but thats it! Farve had one good CAREER and with every career you get ups and downs no one is perfect. Please re-read my first post you people who can't back up your bashing. Favre is the NFL IRONMAN FOR A REASON.
23 - Packer Girl
Here's a good quote that sums up Favre....."Stars fade away, champions come & go, but legends, they're forever."
24 - Ann
"to what peyton manning did last weekend when he blamed his offensive line for HIS troubles."
He didn't blame them, but in response to a direct question he did admit that they had problems. Are you saying, they didn't? This is a fake story the press and Indy haters created. If the offensive line really felt slighted, they would have at least spoken out against Manning anonymously. Didn't see it anywhere.
If Favre wants to come back, he should. He had basically no team around him and tried to overcompensate which led to disastrous results. It is not as if Aaron Rodgers or Craig Nall would have done any better. The owners seem content to let him come back and others players can certainly learn from him. Unless he dies on the field, he couldn't have a worse season next year.
To TN, how is it disresepctful for Favre to play a game after his father died? Did you know his dad? Unless Favre somehow had special powers to bring his dad back to life and chose not to use them, what was wrong with playing? Life goes on.
25 - Tyler Newton had a good point here
"To TN, how is it disresepctful for Favre to play a game after his father died? Did you know his dad? Unless Favre somehow had special powers to bring his dad back to life and chose not to use them, what was wrong with playing? Life goes on. "
Who else in your entire LIFE have you heard of working the day after their dad dies (unless they had a strained relationship with him)???
Seriously, who else. It's unheard of because it's UNIVERSAL that you PAY YOUR FATHER RESPECT.
Is work more important than your father's life? NO. But for Brett Favre, work (and some stupid iron man record or something) was more important. That's disrepect on a grand scale.