Until last night, we weren’t sure if we were on the side of Brett Favre or the Packers — which, as many of you know, is like trying which medieval torture device to try out. With Favre, we knew this was all going to happen. You don’t retire after a 13-3 season that ends just short of a goal. A legend either quits after reaching the pinnacle or falling flat on his face. And this was a waffling legend still close to the top of his game. So when he wanted to come back — at the start, when he wanted to come back to Green Bay — one initial thought was, “Of course. The timing is terrible, but this is still a no-brainer. He makes Green Bay better. Period. If they have serious aspirations of going to the Super Bowl, they will take him back and make him the starter.” Then again, we could also see it from the Green Bay perspective. GM Ted Thompson and Co. have spent months reshaping the roster after getting an early and — presumably — straight answer from the waffle-master about his plans. He retired. OK, time to move on. It’s hard to move out of that mindset and reconfigure plans for one player, particularly when it will seriously impact your QB of the future (and present), Aaron Rodgers.

So it was a dicey, sticky, two-sided situation that was putting both sides in a terribly awkward position. Vikings fans giggled with each day of drama. Some privately hoped the Packers would give in to Favre’s recent wish to be released and, somehow, wind up in Purple. But now we are firmly convinced that this whole affair can only end one of two ways: Favre stays retired or he grudgingly accepts whatever terms Green Bay offers for a return. And we think he is bringing it on himself with the mammoth-sized ego displayed last night in a Fox interview that tipped at least our public opinion squarely into the camp that supports Packers management. Some excerpts, from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, which obtained a transcript of the two-part interview (part II coming tonight).

In the transcript, Favre expressed frustration with three incidents in the recent Packers past involving Thompson.

In one instance, Favre told Van Susteren that “I worked my butt off two years ago to try to get them to sign Randy Moss,” adding that he was willing to give up salary to land the talented receiver.

But Favre said Thompson denied publicly that Favre had lobbied to get Moss, which Favre said was not the case. Moss signed with the New England Patriots.

In a second instance, Favre said he once tried to convince Thompson to re-sign Marco Rivera and Mike Wahle, two key linemen, but the two got away and signed elsewhere.

In a third case, Favre told Van Susteren he tried to convince Thompson to interview Steve Mariucci, an old friend, for the head coaching job vacated by Mike Sherman. Favre said Thompson ended up hiring Mike McCarthy instead.

So Favre is upset because the GM did his job? Those are the sentiments of an ego run amok. But there’s more:

In the interview, Favre said he wanted to play again, didn’t want to return to be quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ backup, didn’t want to be traded but wanted the freedom to play for a competitive team. Said Favre: “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.”

He knew that could possibly happen? That when he retired, they would stop counting on him playing? Yes, Brett, that’s what happens. But we’re glad you’re not mad that Green Bay made a series of logical decisions based on your teary actions.

Later, Favre made an apparent reference to Thompson in describing his conversations with team officials. “You guys have a different path, fine,” he said. “What does that mean for me? . . . So that means, either you give me my helmet, welcome back, you release me, or attempt to trade me. We all know that that’s a possibility, but a way out there possibility. And he says, ‘Playing here is not an option, but we can’t envision you playing with another team, either.’ And I thought, so basically, I’m not playing for anyone.”

That’s right, son. Because you RETIRED. You can’t just have whatever you want. Because the Packers are now in a Catch-22. Yes, bringing you back makes them better in the short term, but it kills the future (Aaron Rodgers says “see ya” if this drags out another year), and the more you talk the less likely they are to want you. Also, there cannot be any possible way they want to let you go somewhere else, particularly when “somewhere” could be a talent-rich division rival that might be one veteran QB away from a serious Super Bowl run.

Favre, dressed casually in a T-shirt, told Van Susteren that he was guilty of retiring early and “there is a reason for that. And the major issue is, ‘Why did he retire?’ and ‘He asked for a release because he doesn’t want to play in Green Bay.’ That’s not true. And I hope people are hearing this and saying, ‘OK, that clears it up.’ ”

Actually, as the article nicely notes, all this did was muddy up the situation. But we do thank Favre for clearing up just how big his ego is during an interview with Greta Van Susteren, a Wisconsin native and Packers shareholder (according to the JS article). We’ll side with the Packers while declaring Cheesehead fans divided and Favre’s legacy tarnished forever.

Just for fun, let’s look back at his “retirement” press conference. Anything else you have to add will be delightfully welcomed in the comments.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 15th, 2008 at 8:46 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.