Brett Favre needs a good old fashioned punch in the face
I sat down to try to think of something to write about tonight. I kept coming up empty. Then I started thinking- 12seconds.tv has a mini-app on their site dubbed the 12erator. It’s designed to give you things to 12 about. In case you’re unfamiliar with the site, it’s just what it sounds like- you have 12 seconds to vlog about anything you like. There are daily challenges and such, but most people seem to just treat it like Video Twitter. I digress.
The 12erator gave me some ideas I couldn’t think of anything for, and then, like magic- the perfect topic came up; “The Person Who Deserves To Be Punched In The Face The Most.” Now- I’m not going to nitpick, but that could easily be read as “what person deserves the most punches to the face.” I decided to compile a list of people who deserve to be punched in the face on a scale of 1 punch to 5 punches. Without further ado, the first person on my list is…
Dr. Favrelove, or How I Learned to Disect the Stats and Hate Brett Favre
Let me start off by saying Brett Favre will go down as one of the greatest quarterbacks the world has ever seen. Statistically. The guy holds records for passing yards, touchdowns, completions, and consecutive games started to name a few. But I HATE Brett Favre.
Michael Jordan shocked the world when he retired from the NBA. No one could have possibly seen it coming. His father had been tragically murdered, and Mike cited his father’s desire to see his play baseball as a major reason for his retirement. It didn’t work for him though- he was human with a bat in hand.
Less than a year later, the sports world went into a frenzy over two words: “I’m back.” MJ would lead the Bulls once again. Some familiar faces were still there, most notably Scottie Pippen, Mike’s right hand man. Several of the others were gone. But the arguably most important piece was there: head coach Phil Jackson. They did it again- three consecutive championships in 96, 97, and 98. In the 1998 NBA Finals, Jordan made magic again. At the top of the key, he drained a shot over Utah’s Byron Scott to seal the series. As he let it go, Mike left his hand hanging in the air until the shot fell.
It was the last game Jordan played in a Chicago Bulls uniform, but the basketball world was satisfied. Michael Jordan would end his career on a high note, and would always be remembered for the shot. He officially announced his retirement in the off-season in 1999. But he didn’t stay away.
In 2001, Michael was working in the front offices of the Washington Wizards. The team was doing horribly. The hero returned as a Washington Wizard. It was the first time in his professional career that he wouldn’t be a Bull. And it was bad. Mike’s age had caught up to him. An injury to his knee shortened his first season back to just 60 games. Younger players like Allen Iverson had become the superstars of the league. Mike played two seasons for the Wizards, and retired for the last time.
I say all of this to say that I don’t hate Brett Favre for retiring, un-retiring, retiring, etc.- I hate Brett because of the attention he clearly craves. Brett retired after the 2006 season, Brett had tears in his eyes when he announced that he was done playing professional football. I felt for him, I really did. He was a man walking away from what he did best, and did better than most anyone else.
In the off-season, there were rumors that Brett was considering coming back to play for the Packers again. He announced shortly before the start of the season that he would return. Brett lead the Packers deep into the playoff, all the way to the NFC Championship. The problem was a Giant one. More accurately, the New York Giants. The Giants were on a tear, and they handed Brett a loss in his final game at Lambeau Field.
It was a rough ending to a good season. He retired again, declining to play in the Pro Bowl, where the fans had voted him to play. Once again, Brett stated a desire to play again. You’d think after all he did for the team the previous year, they would welcome him with open arms. Instead, the team had already retooled the offense to fit Favre’s former backup, Aaron Rodgers.
Brett fought like mad to have the Packers bring him back. The Pack didn’t want him there, going as far as offering him some $20 million to essentially stay retired. In the end, they agreed on one thing: a trade to the New York Jets. For only the second time in his career, and the first since he’d become a household name, Favre wasn’t going to be a Packer. For the most part, Jets fans were elated to have the old gunslinger in their fold. They were unhappy, disappointed with Chad Pennington and his weak arm. Favre would be a hero if he could just throw the ball deep down-field for Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery to haul in. And boy did he throw it.
You see- Favre fans often leave out one of his NFL records: 310 interceptions. More than anyone else by 33. The funny part? The guy with 277 played 25 YEARS to Favre’s 18. His 464 TDs is more than any other, which is indeed impressive, but his season as a Jet was lackluster, and somewhat deceiving.
Favre finished the season with 22 TDs and 22 INTs. Down the stretch, though, Brett fell apart. The team he had guided to a respectable 8-3(with 20 TDs and only 11 INTs, a good line) through 11 games had a solid shot at the playoffs in the tougher American conference, and more surprisingly in one of the more heated divisions. The last 5 games of the season? 1-4. 2 TDs, 11 INTs. What the stats really don’t tell you in the big picture is if you remove week 4 from Brett’s season stats, he’s left with 16 TDs and 21 INTs. 14 TDs and 10 INTs in the other 7 games. Hardly legendary.
This off-season, Brett did something that pretty much guaranteed his return to the league- he had surgery on an arm that he claimed wasn’t injured. Since then, the Minnesota Vikings have expressed an interest in Favre. A team who really had a solid shot at a deep playoff run last season, save for their lack of identity at the quarterback spot.
Brett is destroying his legacy. I guess, in the end, I feel valid for not liking Brett Favre. I’ve never been the drama/big commotion kind of guy. Shied away from it in school, stay away from it at work, I just don’t like it. But God help me, if Brett’s playing ensures I’ll never see another of his Wrangler or Prilosec commercials, then let’s see the return of the Purple People Eaters. Brett: please, just this one time- don’t be like Mike.
The most annoying show under the Big Top
I love NFL football. LOVE IT. I follow the Colts with a passion like Wilde had for his writings. Like Van Gogh or Michelangelo had for their painting. Like Rodin had passion for sculpting The Thinker.
I get caught up in the side stories on occassion; Chad Johnson being the most flashy player in the NFL runs his mouth and puts down his team in general/his quarterback(Carson Palmer), and I listen with baited breath waiting to hear what he’s going to say next, who he’s going to diss, and if he’s staying in Cincinnati. When a guy is having off field problems like Adam “Pacman” Jones, I want to know what his team is going to do about it. A guy is having big problems with his family, be it health or what not that causes him to miss games, I want to know things are well, and he’s ready to return. A player has issue with his team and starts demanding trade, or in cases such as Ryan Grant of the Green Bay Packers demanding a new and better contract. And here we are at Green Bay.
Last season, I saw an old man playing with the energy and drive of a rookie. I saw a future Hall-of-Famer playing like he had something to prove. A man who’d done it all- but wanted to reach the pinnacle again. And I saw youth in his game.
I saw Brett Favre throwing a snowball at one of his receivers in a playoff game. Brett Favre answering the press’ questions with a fire in his eyes that had been long gone. Brett Favre striving for excellence, willing his team to win at times. Brett Favre, falling just short of the highest peak a team can hope to reach in the NFL- the Superbowl. Brett Favre, tears in his eyes telling his teammates, fans, coaches, and the press that he was at the end of his journey. Brett Favre, 17 years into a legendary career, called it quits on March 4, 2008.
But it didn’t stick.
Head coach Mike McCarthy announced that Aaron Rodgers would be the new starting QB for the Pack. Rodgers had played behind Favre for 3 years, learning from a master of the game. Last season, when Favre was injured in the second quarter, Rodgers came in to take over playing the Dallas Cowboys in Dallas. The Pack was down 17 points when Rodgers came in. He got them as close as 3 before the Cowboys pulled it together and won the game 37-27. But Rodgers’ numbers were very respectable; he completed 18 passes for 201 yards and a touchdown, no interceptions.
Rodgers was primed for this season. Coach McCarthy announced Rodgers as the starter. But brewing in the background, July 11, 2008, Favre asked the Packers to release him. He wanted an opportunity to “un-retire” and play for another team for his 18th season. The Packers wouldn’t grant this release, as it was a sure ticket Favre would be headed to Minnesota to play for their divisional rivals, the Vikings.
And so begins the Favre media circus.
July 15th, it was announced Favre wouldn’t be released, and furthermore, Aaron Rodgers was still the starting QB in Green Bay. After much negotiation and speculation, Favre applied for his NFL reinstatement on July 29, 2008. All the while, McCarthy and crew standing by Aaron Rodgers. And then it happened. The inevitable. The totally forseen and expected.
August 4th(yesterday), Favre returned to the Packers training camp. The same day, coach Mike McCarthy announced there would be open tryouts for the starting QB spot. A man and team that had stuck by the future of the team(Rodgers) decided to redact the statements made before, and pretty much handed Favre the starting QB job. Aaron Rodgers, the man groomed for the QB role, and who had the entire Green Bay offense redesigned for him, will probably be back to his backup role.
But I can’t really feel bad for him. As annoyed as I am about the whole situation, all the press coverage that doesn’t really need to be, all the hubbub is needless. When it comes down to it, Favre is a proven, seasoned veteran. He’s a man with 2 Superbowl rings, and the guy who took them to the doorstep of another(only to be hit by the Giants’ train, and Eli Manning, who went on to win the Superbowl last season).
I think what the Packers are doing to Rodgers is dirty. But by the same token, if you offer me an employee with huge potential for success, or honestly, failure, and another who has a proven track record of excellence, a legacy of greatness, and records no one is ever very likely to break, I have to pass on the kid. It’s business. Who knows- Favre may come into the season and underperform in spectacular fashion. That will be Rodgers’ cue to step up and be the man.
In closing- lets let this situation in Green Bay die. Favre will rejoin the team, start the season, and leave the door open for Rodgers next season(Favre’s contract is up after this season). Maybe that will be his time. Maybe he can be the unknown kid who comes in to achieve greatness. Maybe he can be the next Brett Favre.
