Report: Rex Ryan Didn’t Want Favre

[Patler]

He has done a lot for the state of Wisconsin.

I'm not saying he did nothing, but "a lot"???????

People attach much too much significance to what effect these entertainers really have. All of them, whether football players, baseball players, actors, musical performers or what have you.

[Partial]

Think about all the money in sales tax alone this guy has brought in...

[Lurker64]

Think about all the money in sales tax alone this guy has brought in...

Do you really think that it was much? Every Packer game is going to get sold out anyway, the Packers are going to sell a bunch of jerseys no matter who the quarterback is, and people aren't really going to spend more money because they have a popular sports team or player; studies have shown that people generally just have a set budget for leisure things, and when people don't spend money on sports and sports paraphernalia they spend it on other things, like movies and vacations, etc.

In theory, you could claim that Favre brought in a lot of people from outside of Wisconsin in order to see him/report on him etc., but I would wager that the vast majority of Packers tickets are in fact, purchased by Wisconsinites, and there's a national media of fairly steady size at every NFL game these days, whether it's Lions v. Bengals or Pats v. Colts.

Is there something I'm missing?

[Partial]

Yes.. you don't have any numbers to back up any claims. I own a favre jersey. I wouldn't own two jersey's if it wasn't for Favre. I'd only have my Hawk jersey.

So, thats 3 bucks from me.

How many people do you think there are?!? Probably a lot over 17 years.

What about local businesses? Brett Favre steakhouse, advertising for local companies, charities, etc.

Dude has done a lot of good!

[Patler]

There probably won't ever be another HOF packer quarterback. At least in our lives. I mean how rare is it that some people here have seen two HOF qbs. How many fans of other teams can say that besides the Niners?

How many? Quite a few, actually. Besides the Packers and 49ers, there are:

Cowboys - Staubach & Aikman
Dolphins - Griese & Marino
Rams - Waterfield & Van Brocklin
Colts - Unitas & Manning (You can argue the Baltimore/Indy thing if you want)
Steelers - Bobby Lane (last 5 seasons), Bradshaw, maybe Roethlisberger.

Other than the Rams, all within the same general time period as the Packers. The Rams saw two in a short period of time, but much longer ago.

[Patler]

Yes.. you don't have any numbers to back up any claims. I own a favre jersey. I wouldn't own two jersey's if it wasn't for Favre. I'd only have my Hawk jersey.

So, thats 3 bucks from me.

How many people do you think there are?!? Probably a lot over 17 years.

What about local businesses? Brett Favre steakhouse, advertising for local companies, charities, etc.

Dude has done a lot of good!

Some things yes, but small potatoes, really. Think about all the thousands of small business owners all over the state who each employ many more people than Favre's few enterprises in WI, who have run those businesses for 20, 30 years or even generations.

Favre had his impact in WI, sure, but be realistic about how significant it is in respect to the overall business in the state.

[Lurker64]

Yes.. you don't have any numbers to back up any claims. I own a favre jersey. I wouldn't own two jersey's if it wasn't for Favre. I'd only have my Hawk jersey.

So, thats 3 bucks from me.

How many people do you think there are?!? Probably a lot over 17 years.

What about local businesses? Brett Favre steakhouse, advertising for local companies, charities, etc.

Dude has done a lot of good!

I own a Don Beebe jersey, a Travis Jervey jersey, and a Rob Davis jersey. Those men have done quite a bit of good for the State of Wisconsin. But the real question is "would I have spent that money anyway, if I hadn't spent it on jerseys?" and the answer is definitely yes. I would have bought concert tickets, or new shoes, or gone to see a bunch of movies, or something.

The thing about the Brett Favre steakhouse, is how often do you suppose people would eat there instead of not-eating? How about instead of "not-eating at home"? Generally, people don't decide to go out because a restaurant exists, they go out because they want to go out and choose between restaurants they own. Advertising? Well, those local companies gave Wisconsin dollars to Brett Favre who likely took them back to Mississippi. But if you're saying "Brett Favre's endorsement got people to buy whatever it was" that's quite possibly true, but the question is "did they spend money that they would not otherwise have spent due to Brett's endorsement" which is possible, but personally I've never bought anything simply because it was endorsed by a celebrity, but I'm possibly exceptional.

Brett Favre's charity work is something he should be commended for, but not really any more than anybody else who does a similar amount of good.

[Patler]

Brett Favre's charity work is something he should be commended for, but not really any more than anybody else who does a similar amount of good.

Absolutely. His work with the "Make a Wish" Foundation should be noted particularly. He seems to have been exceptionally accommodating to them, and I am sure it meant a tremendous amount to the kids and families that met him. But even that has to be considered in perspective, and compared to the nameless, faceless volunteers in our communities who spend multiple hours each week all year long giving their time and money for their own expenses to Big Brothers/Big Sisters, various after school and children at risk programs, etc.

[sharpe1027]

I have no idea whether or not Majik could have made the HOF. Predicting an entire career is difficult. But there are some interesting stats surrounding Majkowski.

Only one time did Majkowski play an entire season of 16 games, 1989. He lead the NFL in passing yardage that year. His yardage total of 4,318 was surpassed by Favre only one time in his long career of playing 16 games year after year after year. He racked up that yardage throwing to a bunch of receivers. He had Sharpe for 1400+ yards, but the next highest was Woodside with just 527 yards. A lot of yards went to a lot of nobodies.

Well, he "could made" the HoF. It is, after all, just a hypothetical. What I think, though, is that it would have been very unlikely. First, we can probably agree that it is possible to compile a long list of one year success stories. Second, while he was very successful that one year with little help from the running game and only one great WR, he got all those yards because all they did was throw the ball. I think many people would agree that even for that one year he was not the best QB in the NFL; he just threw the ball more.

[Patler]

I have no idea whether or not Majik could have made the HOF. Predicting an entire career is difficult. But there are some interesting stats surrounding Majkowski.

Only one time did Majkowski play an entire season of 16 games, 1989. He lead the NFL in passing yardage that year. His yardage total of 4,318 was surpassed by Favre only one time in his long career of playing 16 games year after year after year. He racked up that yardage throwing to a bunch of receivers. He had Sharpe for 1400+ yards, but the next highest was Woodside with just 527 yards. A lot of yards went to a lot of nobodies.

Well, he "could made" the HoF. It is, after all, just a hypothetical. What I think, though, is that it would have been very unlikely. First, we can probably agree that it is possible to compile a long list of one year success stories. Second, while he was very successful that one year with little help from the running game and only one great WR, he got all those yards because all they did was throw the ball. I think many people would agree that even for that one year he was not the best QB in the NFL; he just threw the ball more.

He threw the ball more, completed the ball more and made the Pro-Bowl. He was pretty darn good that year. Favre had two seasons in which he threw the ball more than Majkowski did in '89, and in one of those seasons he completed significantly fewer than Majkowski did in '89. In neither of the seasons in which he attempted more passes than Majkowski did in '89, did Favre have as many yards as Majkowski did in '89. You also have to remember that in '89 Majkowski was just a third year player in his first season as the fulltime starter. How he might have grown or developed is anyone's guess

Unfortunately, '89 was the last time that Majkowski played with any kind of decent health. I'm not suggesting that he could have maintained the level of performance he had in '89, it would be just a guess to say that he would have. But his play in '89 looked legitimate, not like a fluke. He had confidence in himself, and the team had confidence in him. I thought Majkowski had a much more dynamic performance in '89 than Rodgers did last season, and not just based on Majkowski's comeback performances that year. It was an attitude that the team had with him in there.

[mraynrand]

Majkowski .... How he might have grown or developed is anyone's guess

That's about all you can say about it.

Plus, given the choice between starting Brett Favre or Bart Starr at QB at the peak of their respective games, I would take Brett Favre without thinking twice about it. So would Bart Starr.

[sharpe1027]

He threw the ball more, completed the ball more and made the Pro-Bowl. He was pretty darn good that year. Favre had two seasons in which he threw the ball more than Majkowski did in '89, and in one of those seasons he completed significantly fewer than Majkowski did in '89. In neither of the seasons in which he attempted more passes than Majkowski did in '89, did Favre have as many yards as Majkowski did in '89. You also have to remember that in '89 Majkowski was just a third year player in his first season as the fulltime starter. How he might have grown or developed is anyone's guess

Unfortunately, '89 was the last time that Majkowski played with any kind of decent health. I'm not suggesting that he could have maintained the level of performance he had in '89, it would be just a guess to say that he would have. But his play in '89 looked legitimate, not like a fluke. He had confidence in himself, and the team had confidence in him. I thought Majkowski had a much more dynamic performance in '89 than Rodgers did last season, and not just based on Majkowski's comeback performances that year. It was an attitude that the team had with him in there.

- Was his season good? Yes

- Was it dynamic? Aboslutely.

- Does he stack up against Favres numbers? You point to Favre's yards/attempt, but seem to overlook all other indicators. You try to discredit Don's high volume of throws by comparing him to a few of Favre's seasons. However, it is interesting that in his big year Don wasn't even in the top ten in yards/att. He threw almost 49 more passes than the next closest QB that year. He was third in TDs, but also third in INTs. He was sacked second most of any QB. I am not sure how much to blame on him and how much on the O-line, but I think his style of play did lead to more sacks. His passer rating was 82, and was 8th in the league. Overall, he had a good year, but, IMHO, the jury was still out on him. Looking at all of the information, it is entirely reasonable to believe that he could have gone either way after that season...and history tells us which way he did in fact go.

- Was his one season a fluke? No way to be sure. His injury provides an excuse, but was it really the main problem? Did he lose velocity on this throws? I do not recall anyone saying it did. Did he lose accuracy? I guess you could say he did, but he wasn't exactly known for pin-point accuracy. You seem to imply that his one season suggests he was the real deal. You point to his yards per attempt and an attitude of the team. I agree that those are positive indicators (although his yards per attempt were not that outstanding); however, he was given his chances and not just with the Packers. You don't seem to factor in the rest of his career and even the rest of his stats that year. I can't say that his injury didn't ruin his career, but I think there is plenty of reasons to believe that the same result may have occurred even without the injury. It makes us feel good to provide an excuse for a guy that gave us his all and that provided us with one of the most memorable seasons ever. Being totally honest, however, I think his injury was only a part of the reason he never had the same success again.

- Does comparing him to Rodgers mean anything in the context of our discussion? Not that I can tell.

[Waldo]

The big difference was that Rodgers took over a team used to winning. Don took over a team that hadn't done much in two decades. He represented hope at the QB position, something the team hadn't seen in a very long time. Dickey flashed a little too, but that very long ago by that point. Rodgers wasn't much more than changing a tire on the car, not much really changed.

[sharpe1027]

The big difference was that Rodgers took over a team used to winning. Don took over a team that hadn't done much in two decades. He represented hope at the QB position, something the team hadn't seen in a very long time. Dickey flashed a little too, but that very long ago by that point. Rodgers wasn't much more than changing a tire on the car, not much really changed.

Was this directed at me? If so, I don't understand the comparisons to Rodgers. I suspect that Rodgers will never be a HoF QB. He could be, but the odds are long, about the same as they were for Don.

From my recollection of 1989, Don had a lot of Majik that year, but was often part of the reason that the Majik was needed. I just don't share your belief that he might have been as good as Favre without the injury. Anything is possible, but IMO, it is just too convenient of an excuse. This was a guy that provided wins and excitement for a fan base that was starving for anything positive. It is a fond memory for Packer fnas, which is why it is easier to blame an injury to avoid casting doubt on the Majik of that year.

[Waldo]

Perhaps you also misunderstand, I don't think that Favre was that good to begin with. He had a 3 year run where he was real good, prior to that and after that he was loved more for the way he acted when he played the game, than his actual on field performance.