OFFICIAL BRETT THE LIVING LEGEND THREAD

[Pugger]

My neighbor from MN teased me this morning telling me the Packers were gonna take Brett back. I said no thanks, you guys can have him!!

[BTP]

here a little present to the board

[packinpatland]

"Hamlet in chin-strap . . . refusing to ever take a knee"

This was too good not to post.
The reasons for Favre NOT to retire are laugh out loud "* Even in wheelchair, can always beat Chicago."

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-erskine15-2009jan15,0,2017690.column

Brett Favre has earned the right to write his own ending
He's getting a lot of advice after less-than-stellar finish to his season with the Jets, but the gritty, grim quarterback deserves NFL's respect and admiration.
Chris Erskine
January 15, 2009
I have been, for many years now, a connoisseur of great endings. Ice Bowls, Kirk Gibson home runs, and Dorothy discovering it was all only a dream. I'm a sucker for such stuff. But what are the alternatives? Cynicism, then death? I've been in California too long for that to happen. I prefer unbridled optimism and the sunshine with which to find it.

Which brings us to the happy-or-sad saga of Brett Lorenzo Favre, a quarterback of some distinction who last year left the Great White North for the friendly confines of New York City, where the munchkins are now hovering all around him, offering their sage, munchkinly advice. Just insane, isn't it?

You've got that snot-bubble Thomas Jones calling him out after the Jets' collapse down the stretch. Apparently Jones, a middling running back who had his first Pro Bowl year with Favre at the helm, is too stoned on his own wonderfulness to remember the Jets' going 4-12 last season.

Before Favre arrived, the Jets were the French Foreign Legion of football, an outpost, a place of misfits and crushed souls. Under Favre, they started out an amazing 8-3, till someone banged up his right wing, after which Favre couldn't throw a gum wrapper out a car window without Brandon Flowers picking it off.

Admittedly, it was a not-so-great ending to what looked like a fairy-tale year. But I guess that's New York for you. Only Amy Adams and Meg Ryan find happy endings in the concrete apple. For the rest of us, there is only disappointment and midwinter slush.

Thing is, Brett Favre is a national treasure, ask almost anybody. Forget the recent interceptions for a moment and think about whom you'd rather watch. Brett Favre or Jake Delhomme? Brett Favre or Joe Flacco? Kyle Orton? The estimable Kellen Clemens (Favre's backup)?

No, I'm guessing most fans would prefer to turn on the tube to find No. 4 performing on a wintry day, when the dark sky makes it look as if the world is about to collapse -- conditions are muddy, war-like, and there is the very real possibility that you might witness the greatest ending ever. For all his wear and tear, you still get that feeling with Favre, that you might see something just extraordinary.

Because the NFL, at its very best, isn't computer graphics and referees studying replays, in those weird hooded cubicles (like priests). The real NFL is the gritty, grim and whiskered visage of Favre squinting at the strong safety, playing poker in the snow. That's magic. That's football. That's the kind of moment that has made No. 4 the most popular player of the modern era.

With all its technology, the NFL should be trying to figure out how to copy and paste Favre across the league, not ways to drive him out.

As I often do to get through a day, I have been making lists -- shave, get dressed, breathe deep, that sort of thing. In this case, I'm making lists for Favre. Does he stay or go? Pro and cons. Pluses and minuses. It's almost impossible not to have a little fun.

Reasons for Favre to retire

* Keeps falling asleep in huddles.

* During coin flip, refs offer him an AARP discount.

* CBS planning new show: "CSI: Brett Favre."

Reasons for Favre not to retire

* A little gut looks good on a quarterback.

* There are still 29 teams he hasn't played for.

* Even in wheelchair, can always beat Chicago.

Meanwhile, down deep in the swamps, where the best quarterbacks seem to emerge from the ooze, they're getting ready to appoint Favre's air apparent. Tim Tebow -- rhymes with TiVo -- is Florida's rhapsody in blue and orange. By the time he's done next season, Tebow may be the first collegiate player to win both the Heisman and the Nobel Prize. A little too good to be true, Tebow is, but if I have to choose between him and Pacman . . . well, you know.

Yet, for all his considerable gifts, I get the nagging feeling that the young Gator might be the next Bobby Douglass, a big southpaw who's neither a true thrower nor runner, the kind of hybrid who always puzzles the pro game's offensive geniuses. Hope I'm wrong, which has happened (check preceding paragraph). Honestly, I hope Tebow reinvents the game.

Till that happens, I'm praying to get another 100,000 miles out of Favre, a quarterback with more arm and a herculean heart. (Talk about dream matchups, how about Favre against Tebow? In the snow, of course.)

See, Favre loves football the way I love raindrops on roses and meatballs on toothpicks. This retirement of his is a complicated saga, deeply personal and compounded by the fact that even when he goes, he sometimes ends up staying. There is something marvelous and vaguely Shakespearean in his grinding passions for our national game.

Hamlet in chin-strap . . . refusing to ever take a knee.

[Fritz]

As a Packer fan, my opinion of that article is that I hope the Packers and Jets work out a deal where the Jets can trade Favre to the Vikes and the Pack will accept "only" a second round pick from Minnesota. The Queens would give the Jets a third, the Pack a second, and Favre gets one more year - in a dome.

That's my fantasy.

[Rastak]

As a Packer fan, my opinion of that article is that I hope the Packers and Jets work out a deal where the Jets can trade Favre to the Vikes and the Pack will accept "only" a second round pick from Minnesota. The Queens would give the Jets a third, the Pack a second, and Favre gets one more year - in a dome.

That's my fantasy.

Dream on.



My understanding is that the Jets are over the cap. If he sits tight they are NOT going to want to carry that cap number and prune the roster down. In addition, is a new coach going to want to have his first year be with an old guy at QB? I would guess the new coach will want to start the transition to a new QB right away. In addition, I doubt they'd get squat for him. If he doesn't announce his retirement before the Jets need to get within the cap, he'll get released.

[Freak Out]

Snot bubble? Damn....or as Mobb would say..."dayum!"

[channtheman]

There are a few things I would like to point out about that article.

1. Thomas Jones wasn't on that 4-12 team was he? I thought the Jets just got him this year (same as Favre). Am I wrong here?

2. The Jets weren't the worst teams ever the past few years. They merely flip flopped their record every other season, with years when Pennington was healthy, they were actually better and went to the playoffs.

3. It says he can always beat the Bears, even in a wheelchair, when Favre actually lost to the Bears twice last year with one of those losses on MM (the first) and the second on Favre.

No I don't hate Favre, but the facts are there and it's clear that the person who wrote that article did not do their research.

[Bretsky]

There are a few things I would like to point out about that article.

1. Thomas Jones wasn't on that 4-12 team was he? I thought the Jets just got him this year (same as Favre). Am I wrong here?

2. The Jets weren't the worst teams ever the past few years. They merely flip flopped their record every other season, with years when Pennington was healthy, they were actually better and went to the playoffs.

3. It says he can always beat the Bears, even in a wheelchair, when Favre actually lost to the Bears twice last year with one of those losses on MM (the first) and the second on Favre.

No I don't hate Favre, but the facts are there and it's clear that the person who wrote that article did not do their research.

1. Yes, you are wrong; I think Jones has not played two years for the Jets
2. True
3. So what is Favre's record against the Bears ? Give me the facts.

[Fritz]

As a Packer fan, my opinion of that article is that I hope the Packers and Jets work out a deal where the Jets can trade Favre to the Vikes and the Pack will accept "only" a second round pick from Minnesota. The Queens would give the Jets a third, the Pack a second, and Favre gets one more year - in a dome.

That's my fantasy.

Dream on.



My understanding is that the Jets are over the cap. If he sits tight they are NOT going to want to carry that cap number and prune the roster down. In addition, is a new coach going to want to have his first year be with an old guy at QB? I would guess the new coach will want to start the transition to a new QB right away. In addition, I doubt they'd get squat for him. If he doesn't announce his retirement before the Jets need to get within the cap, he'll get released.

Does this mean I won't get a night with Pam Anderson either??

[channtheman]

There are a few things I would like to point out about that article.

1. Thomas Jones wasn't on that 4-12 team was he? I thought the Jets just got him this year (same as Favre). Am I wrong here?

2. The Jets weren't the worst teams ever the past few years. They merely flip flopped their record every other season, with years when Pennington was healthy, they were actually better and went to the playoffs.

3. It says he can always beat the Bears, even in a wheelchair, when Favre actually lost to the Bears twice last year with one of those losses on MM (the first) and the second on Favre.

No I don't hate Favre, but the facts are there and it's clear that the person who wrote that article did not do their research.

1. Yes, you are wrong; I think Jones has not played two years for the Jets
2. True
3. So what is Favre's record against the Bears ? Give me the facts.

Sure he's had a lot of success against the Bears but coming off of losing like 5 out his last 6 (or something, I know it's a lot since Lovie took over), it isn't exactly a good time to say Favre owns the Bears and could in a wheelchair. It clearly isn't true, anymore.

[packinpatland]

Come on........where's your sense of humor?

I take that back.......maybe you don't need a sense of humor....just the facts.

Q. What is Brett Favre's career win-loss record versus the Bears?

A. Brett Favre is 22-8 against the Bears. That's his most career regular-season wins against any opponent.

http://www.packers.com/team/stats/ask_elias/

[Cleft Crusty]

I notice the continued predilection of comparing Favre with Hamlet, ostensibly because they share the same indecisive nature. However, I see a comparison far more grim; namely that Favre, as he ponders and wavers over his retirement, ultimately succeeds in poisoning everyone around him, until at last, with not one, not two, but three agonal gasps, finally expires after tossing one final touchdown. O, bitter victory! O, I am slain! (dies)

[cpk1994]

As a Packer fan, my opinion of that article is that I hope the Packers and Jets work out a deal where the Jets can trade Favre to the Vikes and the Pack will accept "only" a second round pick from Minnesota. The Queens would give the Jets a third, the Pack a second, and Favre gets one more year - in a dome.

That's my fantasy.

Have you gotten into Ty's supply of crack?

[Fritz]

"A man has gotta dream...it's in his nature."

Death of a Salesman

[sheepshead]

Rex, forget Favre and check out options

Bob Glauber
January 21, 2009

Rex Ryan will be officially introduced today as the Jets' coach, and it won't be long before reporters grill him on the biggest issue he faces: What to do with Brett Favre?

The 39-year-old quarterback continues to deliberate about his future at his Mississippi home and may not have an answer for several weeks. And Ryan will in all likelihood dance around the issue out of respect to Favre.

But with the first-year head coach coming off a season watching a rookie quarterback lead the Ravens to the AFC Championship Game, and with Favre coming off a season in which he imploded down the stretch, it is understandable if Ryan wishes to proceed with a different quarterback in 2009.

OK, let me put that a different way: If Ryan thinks Favre is the answer, he's nuts.


Favre is long past his prime, had arm problems late in the season and lost four of his last five games, throwing two touchdown passes and nine interceptions. His partially torn right biceps might need surgery. But does Ryan really want an aging, ailing quarterback for his first season?

If there's any doubt, perhaps Ryan should look at Favre's downward trend the last four seasons. In December games since 2005, Favre has thrown 13 TD passes and 31 interceptions.

The numbers don't lie.

Favre has been a pleasure to watch for the majority of his mostly brilliant career. Believe me, there is no joy in writing that it is time to retire. But the time comes for all the great ones, and Favre's time has come. It is over. So what does Ryan do at football's most important position? There are plenty of options to deal with life after Favre:

Sign Matt Cassel in a nanosecond if he's a free agent

OK, so it's not going to happen, because the Patriots are almost certain to use the franchise tag on Cassel with the uncertainty surrounding Tom Brady's recovery from knee surgery. But stranger things have happened. If the Pats let him go, it's a no-brainer to go after him.

Trade for Derek Anderson

The Browns quarterback will almost certainly be on the market after losing his job to Brady Quinn. If former Jets coach Eric Mangini, now the Browns' boss, wants to keep one or the other, Anderson would surely be the one to go.

I think he is a decent quarterback who was caught up in an awful situation this season. He's 25. He's 6-5, 230. He has a big arm. In 2007, he threw for 29 TDs and ran for three. This season, with Quinn hovering and a preseason concussion leaving Anderson unprepared for the regular season, he stumbled badly. But there is still something there. He's worth consideration.

Bring back Kellen Clemens and Brett Ratliff

Let them slug it out in a training-camp competition.

This is the most viable option, and it's likely to happen. Clemens still has a year left on his rookie contract, and Ratliff showed plenty of promise.

A few minutes after Favre was introduced at a news conference in Cleveland after his Aug. 6 trade, Ratliff put on a terrific show in his only meaningful playing time in the preseason. His first pass was a 71-yard touchdown to David Clowney, and Ratliff also threw a 70-yard TD to Clowney. Ratliff turned into an afterthought once Favre came aboard, but his performance in preseason, when he outplayed Clemens, should not be forgotten.

Clemens believes he's better for having been around Favre and Chad Pennington, and there's no reason not to give him one more shot. He might not have it, but sometimes it takes a few years for the light to come on for a quarterback.

Draft a quarterback

Forget about Georgia's Matthew Stafford. He'll be a Lion in 2009. But USC's Mark Sanchez might be there at No. 17, or the Jets can try to move up. Sanchez may not be ready to play right away, but that's what the Ravens thought about Joe Flacco.

There are other options, none of them likely or palatable. Kurt Warner's contract is up, but he won't play anywhere but Arizona. Kerry Collins wants to start in Tennessee or retire. Rex Grossman is far too erratic.

The preference here: Trade for Anderson, bring back Clemens and Ratliff, and let the thing play itself out.

Sign free agent Byron Leftwich

The Steelers' backup did well in limited action in place of the injured Ben Roethlisberger. With starting experience from his days in Jacksonville, it's too soon to write him off as a full-time starter.