Favre: From the Horse's mouth

Stop the press: Brett Favre has finally given an interview that clarifies his retirement situation. Fox News's Greta Van Susteren has scooped the interview they all wanted, and it will go out tonight.

In the interview, Favre admits that he is 'guilty of retiring early'. He also says that he always wanted to play in Green Bay, and that the current situation is a result of pressure from the organisation. Though he does not name Ted Thompson by name, you can be assured that the media will be jumping straight to the conclusion that he is to blame for Favre's retirement.

"Them moving on does not bother me, it doesn't. I totally understand that. By me retiring March 3rd, I knew that could possibly happen. All I was saying is, you know, I'm thinking about playing again."

- Brett Favre speaking to Fox News

One thing that Favre is making clear is that he will be playing somewhere next season. By finally breaking his silence, he has upped the stakes. The Packers probably can't afford to sit Favre next season for a couple of reasons: He would be a huge distraction to Aaron Rodgers, and it would be terrible PR, especially as Favre is one of the NFL's most popular players ever.

On the other hand, the team seems unreceptive to trade offers, and made it clear on Saturday that there have been no offers as yet for their former star Quarterback. Now that other teams have heard the desire from favre's own mouth, we could see some movement towards a trade in the next few weeks.

What Brett Favre's return means for Aaron Rodgers

As we made quite clear this weekend, the one person we have sympathy for in the whole Brett Favre Tragi-Comedy, is former first round pick Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers has spent three long years waiting for Favre to retire, and now, when he finally seems destined to become starter, his former mentor has expressed his desire to play for yet another season.

Rodgers has publicly been anointed the team's starter by GM Ted Thompson and Coach Mike McCarthy. Unfortunately, that was done before Favre said that he was '100% committed' to playing in 2008. Now that the Packers are becoming ambiguous on the subject, saying that should he return he would be 'considered an active part of the Packers', Rodgers must have the uneasy feeling that his job is far from secure. There is a chance that this is posturing on both sides, and that the team would prefer to move on without #4, but taken at face value, there would be little doubt that Favre would win any QB battle between himself and Rodgers.

So assuming that Favre comes back to the Packers, what does the future hold for Rodgers? Many have suggested that it's no big deal. After all, the guy has sat for three seasons, what will one more matter? Well, apart from the obvious - money earned from playing time and bonuses - Rodgers is getting towards the end of the five year deal he signed in 2005, so assuming that he didn't play this year, that leaves him the 2009 season to prove himself in the NFL. Again though, what price on the Favre question this time next year?

The team has drafted Brian Brohm, arguably a first round talent, and Rodgers may even find himself playing the last year of his contract with pressure from the former Louisville Quarterback. If Brohm gains the trust of the coaching staff, Rodgers would have a very small window to become acclimatised to the NFL. Four years on the bench is no substitute for four games in the league, and it could be argued that neither man has started a regular season game yet.

So what should Rodgers do? His best course of action would likely be to ask for a trade. He would be coveted by a number of teams who aren't convinced by their current incumbent, though if the Pack' demand anywhere near Rodgers' original first round value, that could be a stumbling block. It's still likely that at least one team would be happy to pay up for him though, and with Brohm on the roster, Green Bay may opt to cash in on at least one of their highly rated signal callers.

Unfortunately for Rodgers, he is a cheap insurance policy as far as Green Bay are concerned. He is scheduled to make just $680,000 this year, and even if he starts this season and next, he will have missed out on more than half of the $24.5m deal he signed as a Rookie. In fact, to put things into perspective, he will have made just $2m in incentives, out of a potential $17m.

Money isn't everything, and let's not get into a situation where we feel sorry for millionaires, but the fact remains that Rodgers could find himself out of the league in 3 years time, and have earned a fraction of his likely earnings, if he does not get a chance to prove his worth as a starter in the NFL soon.

For some, that 'Big second contract' can't come round soon enough. For Aaron Rodgers, it is looming up all too quickly on the horizon of his career.

Favre saga trundes on

Chris Jenkins of the AP has handily compiled a timeline of the entire Brett Favre issue. Most of it has been well documented, but some interesting snippets of information have been gleaned.

Certianly, in McCarthy's version of events, Favre would not have been under the impression that GM Ted Thompson and McCarthy did not want him back. If anything, they seem to have gone out of their way to placate their Quarterback, and give him as much time as was needed. McCarthy also mentions that he offered Favre the option of practising less, but as Favre said during his retirement press conference: If he was not 100% commited to football, he wasn't coming back.

Another interesting point is that Thompson - who has been vilified by the media for his part in recent events - actually had dinner with Favre as recently as May. This certainly seems to dispel some of the myth that this is a personal battle between the two, a conclusion readily assumed by the media.

But perhaps the most critical part of the timeline is Favre's assertion towards the end of June. Remember that this was just 3-4 weeks ago:

June 16-20: Acting on Campen's advice, McCarthy calls Favre. They play phone tag for a few days but eventually connect. "You and Ted need to have a plan if I do come back," Favre says, according to McCarthy. "Either give me my helmet or give me my release."

At that point, McCarthy asks Favre if he was 100 percent committed to a return. "He said, 'No, no, I'm not saying I'm there yet.'"

-Associated Press

Those who question the Packers' handling of this situation would do well to read that last sentence again. How could the organisation be sure of Favre's intentions when he was not himself? It seems that all the way up to the draft, the team was open to Favre's return, and actively pursued him to come back. It seems however, that when the team selected QB's Brian Brohm and Matt Flynn, Favre suddenly realised that the team was ready to move on.

This revelation seems to have prompted a stubborn streak in Favre, something that served him well during his NFL career. His desire to prove the Packers wrong seems to be an overriding factor here. He certainly does not seeme to have given the team a fair indication of his mental state before the draft, instead spurning multiple opportunities to respond to their overtures. The fact that Favre first said he was 100% committed to football on July 8th seems to back that up, as the more entrenched Aaron Rodgers became at QB, the less likely the team were to accept him back.

We'll have more on Rodgers soon.

Ted Thompson stands firm - and rightly so.

Many websites and columnists have found an easy scapegoat for the Brett Favre situation - Packers GM Ted Thompson. The words emanating from the Favre-friendly media are that he 'didn't feel wanted' by the Packers, and it has been portrayed by many that Thompson somehow drove Favre out.

Hold on a second.

Brett Favre retired. Does anyone honestly believe that the Pack didn't want Favre to be starter next year? It's rubbish. It's an enormous fallacy, and it's even more baffling that the media genuinely seem to be playing along for some reason. A report by ESPN's Kevin Seifert claims that Favre contacted the team weeks after his decision and said that he had the fabled 'itch'. When the Packers attempted to get him to come back, however, Favre declined a meeting with Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy. If he had shown that he was serious, then the team would have at least known what was happening. As it turned out, the only QB on their roster was Aaron Rodgers.

So the Packers had a dilemma that had no 'right' answer. Sure they could wait for Favre to get another itch, but what if it doesn't come? The idea that the Packers were slave to Favre's whims is a worrying one. At what point did he become bigger than the franchise? Sure, he made the team great, but he didn't do it single handedly.

Ted Thompson made the right decision. He drafted two QB's this year, and promoted Aaron Rodgers to starter. It was the only decision that granted any kind of firm ground beneath the team's feet. If Favre had seriously considered the team's offer to return in March, then this would never have happened. People are enamoured with Favre, and the problem is that some people are actively politicking for his return at the expense of Rodgers. Here is a quote from NFL.com's Pat Kirwan:

The Rodgers era can wait, and if Rodgers doesn't understand that this issue is bigger than him that's too bad.

-NFL.com senior writer Pat Kirwan

What a thought. Aaron Rodgers should really accept that his career may never start. It's irresponsible, reckless journalism that does not deserve it's place on a major sports website. To state that a young man's livelihood is not as important as Brett Favre's 'itch', is to show that you have completely lost touch with reality.

Favre is a great man, and a great player, but this situation is leaving an ugly stain on his legacy. If he is traded, it is perhaps the best compromise for Favre and the Packers, but in reality, he has no leverage to get such an outcome, except the sentiment within the organisation for him.

That sentiment is being eroded daily by his attitude towards the heirarchy in Wisconsin.

Packers refuse to grant Favre's release

As mentioned everywhere, Brett Favre asked the Packers for his release last night, and the Packers have responded by playing hardball with the man who is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.

Speaking to the Associated Press, Packers GM Ted Thompson and Coach Mike McCarthy refused to release Favre, instead saying that should he want to come back to the team, he is more than welcome - as Aaron Rodgers' backup.

The move is clear posturing, as it is unlikely the team has any real desire to pay Favre $12.5m to sit on the bench, nor would they want the inevitable distraction of a healthy Favre pressuring to play at the expense of Rodgers. The team would most likely prefer to trade Favre and get some recompense for a Quarterback who would be in high demand around the league, but the fact that Favre has not indicated a desire to play more than one year could count against his trade value.

In any case, the Packers hold all the cards. If they keep Favre and he asks for a trade, they can send him somewhere away from their division, and preferably away from the NFC. That fact alone has to make the Jets and Ravens the favourites to land Favre after this act has played out.

Where will Favre go?

With the news that Brett Favre is seeking his release from the Green Bay Packers, the league will be buzzing with rumour and conjecture regarding Favre's final destination. For us the biggest question is whether Favre has the desire to play anywhere because he misses football, or if he wants to win another championship.

Here are our top 5 contenders for his signature:

New York Jets

The Jets have spent big money this off-season. They have invested in almost every position - except the one that matters. The QB battle between Kellen Clemens and Chad Pennington is likely to produce nothing concrete heading into this season - a season that will almost certainly decide the fate of coach Eric Mangini. The only question is whether they can afford Favre. If he still wants his $12.5m salary, the Jets will need to clear $3m of cap room, which they could only do by trading Pennington, realistically.

Minnesota Vikings

Obviously, there is one major sticking point in this situation, and that is the rivalry between the Vikes and the Packers. You could argue that if the Vikings are on this list, then why not Chicago? Well, the Vikings (like the Jets) have thrown money at their situation this spring, and again, their big question mark is at QB. The Bears have never thrown money at anything. Ever. It would be extremely unlikely that the Packers would ascede to Favre's demands to be released if they believed he would be playing against them twice next season. The other big question is how excited Favre could be to play with receivers Bernard Berrian and Sidney Rice. It's certainly not the kind of receiving unit that delivers championships.

Tampa Bay Buccanneers

Bucs coach Jon Gruden is a well known advocate of veteran Quarterbacks, and currently has about 4,000 on his roster. Actually though, it would be interesting to see how this situation plays into the contract negotiations with Jeff Garcia. With a player of the same age - but greater talent available, Garcia should be aware that now is not the time to be playing hardball with your team. The Bucs have a mix of veterans and rookies at WR, but definately have considerable talent in Joey Galloway, Ike Hilliard, and Dexter Jackson. They also have an enormous amount of cap room, and really this could hinge on whether Gruden believes that Favre can deliver what Garcia cannot.

Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens are probably slightly better than their record last year suggests. If anywhere makes sense on paper, it's Baltimore. At Quarterback, the Ravens would prefer not to start rookie Joe Flacco, but it's something they have had to seriously consider in the last few weeks. The otehr alternatives are Kyle Boller and Troy Smith, neither of which seems to be the long term answer. Apart from that, there are veteran receivers such as Derrick Mason, a great rushing attack, and a solid line, despite the retirement of Jonathan Ogden. One other thing - the Ravens Defence can create the kind of opportunities that Favre would relish.

Detroit Lions

Much like the Vikings, this could be a non-starter because of the fact that Favre would be coming back to haunt the Packers twice next year. On the other hand, the team has many ingredients that could make them an attractive proposition to a veteran Quarterback. The team has one of the best Receiving corps in football, with Roy Williams, Calvin Johnson, Shaun Macdonald, and Mike Furrey all capable of big plays. Questions do surround the running game, however, and Favre may be unwilling to play for a team that has rarely looked like coming out of a slump it has been in for 20 years.


Other teams in the mix:

Carolina Panthers - If Delhomme is fit, it's not happening
Kansas City Chiefs - No weapons = No playoffs
Chicago Bears - Not enough to make him public enemy no.1 in Green Bay
Atlanta Falcons - Unlikely, but he has been there before, and the Falcons may want to avoid blooding Matt Ryan early.

If you love someone, set them free.

Sorry for the Police reference, but according to Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com Brett Favre has officially handed in a request that the Green Bay Packers release him from their roster, paving the way for #4 to ply his trade elsewhere.

The move has been anticipated in media circles for a few days now, and it puts the Packers in an unenviable situation. If they play hardball, they put Favre at odds with the organisation which owes him so much. On the other hand, releasing him would clear his $12m salary, but mean that the Pack would receive nothing in return for a player who could still command at least a first day draft choice.

We'll go through the list of teams that Favre could play for in the next article.