I had to take a couple of days before I talked about this. Not because I am emotionally distraught or anything, but because I really wasn’t sure what to say. If you look around online you’ll see plenty of sports writers who have already weighed in with their comments. But I’m not a sports writer. In fact, I’m barely a sports fan. I like football and, to a lesser extent, baseball, but that’s just about it. I’m not one of those guys who spends their free time glued to ESPN watching the US Open, or the Rock, Paper Scissors championship on ESPN2 (NOTE: I didn’t make that up…there really IS a professional Rock, Paper, Scissors league, complete with coaches, sponsors, spandex attire, and…er…athletes).
Still, as a football fan, it would be almost impossible not to have an opinion on Brett Favre’s retirement. Even as a Dallas fan, I like Favre. He’s hard not to like. Green Bay is my 2nd favorite team after the Cowboys, and it’s sad to see a legend like Favre pack it in. But at the same time the guy has had a long career, much longer than most NFL quarterbacks (Vinny Testaverde notwithstanding), and he deserves to walk away if that’s what he wants. But it’s not just the length of his tenure as starting QB that sets him apart, it’s the accomplishments he made during that time.
Favre loved to throw the football. I think if you look back on his career, that is one statement you will find to be true above all else. He loved to throw, and he was good at it. The numbers back him up, too. Most passing yards ever in a career, most TD passes ever in a career, most passes completed in a career, most passes attempted in a career, most career wins, the list goes on and on. These are all records held by Favre, many of them he broke this past year. There’s also his record for most passes intercepted by an opposing team…yep, he holds that rather dubious record, as well. Which all points to the simple truth…Brett Favre loved to throw. And when he did, it wasn’t so much a throw as it was the firing of a football from a cannon. Brett's arm was (and is) just plain dangerous. When he first started in Green bay, one of his receivers actually commented to the effect that when Brett threw, he was trying to put holes in people. Yeah. The ball came that hard.
He played every game like he was having a great time, and it showed. I truly believe it was never about the money or the fame for Brett, but simple love of the game. And the game loved him back, to the tune of two Super Bowl appearances and one Super Bowl win. Many great QBs never get that win; look at Jim Kelly and Fran Tarkenton. But the folks in Wisconsin knew early on that Brett would bring the Lombardi Trophy back to Titletown someday, and Brett proved them right in 1997. It was the first time since 1968 that Green Bay was able to lay claim to the trophy named after their own legendary head coach, Vince Lombardi.
So when he says he has nothing left to prove, I get it. He holds just about every record worth having and he has that lovely Super Bowl ring and legions of Farve lovers all over the world. He’s a lock for the Hall of Fame, and his career is already legendary, from playing after losing 30 inches of his intestine to playing just days after his father’s death. If you ask some of the younger QBs in the NFL these days, many of them will point to Favre as someone who inspired them when they were kids (including Tony Romo).
Aaron Rogers, Brett’s backup, has a mighty big pair of shoes to fill as the new starting QB for Green Bay. Luckily, he’s good, and I think he will do well. BUT, he is replacing one of the NFL’s greatest living legends. The folks in Green Bay used to say that Brett was good, but he’s no Bart Starr. I think Rogers will be plagued by statements that he is good, but he’s no Brett Favre. I also think he has enough talent to overcome them, but that’s just my opinion. In a town with streets named after Bart Starr and Brett Favre, is there room for an Aaron Rogers Blvd?
We will see what the future holds for the Green Bay Packers, which, for those who don’t know, is actually the NFL franchise with the most championships (they were winning the Big Games long before there was a Super Bowl). But I wouldn’t be surprised to see Favre on the sidelines before too long. Maybe as a QB coach or an offensive coordinator.
He does love to throw the football, after all.
