The Day After

"Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”

-Dylan Thomas, “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.”

Oh boy.

Well, Brett Favre is back. Whoop-de-doo.

Yes, the 3-time NFL MVP and 2007 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year has decided to return to a career in professional football. Again.

After retiring from the Packers after the 2007 season, the Jets after the 2008 season, and, for all intents and purposes, the Vikings before the 2009 season (the latter without ever signing a contract), Favre has fooled the media and football fans alike by deciding to join one of the chief rivals of the team for which he played a staggering 17 NFL seasons.

Wow.

For those of you who don’t know me, Favre’s legacy, tarnished as it may be, will always hold a special place in my heart. I am a Packer fan, and, somewhat ironically, the reason why I became a Packer fan in the first place was none other than Brett Lorenzo Favre. He was, well, is, my namesake, and to a grade school child the importance of this cannot be overstated. Since I began my fandom, however, my adoration for all things green and gold soon stretched far beyond merely the beloved quarterback and became an obsession with the team, its fans, and its history. With this in mind, you can imagine my confusion as Favre retired, decided to come back the first time, and was subsequently traded to the New York Jets. Here was a case of my boyhood icon treating my favorite franchise in sports like dirt and vice versa, with fans decidedly on both sides of the issue. I didn’t know what to think.

After much deliberation, I came down on the side of the organization. This was after staying up nights analyzing all facets of the issue from every major and non-major media outlet, straining to see each party’s view. Still, after all was said and done, the entire affair left a bitter taste in my mouth as I was left to stare longingly at the cover of my Madden 20th Anniversary game. It gave whole new meaning to the Madden Curse.

So here we are again, a year older and a year wiser, watching the soap opera that various media outlets have termed “As the Brett Turns.” I prefer to think of it as “The Old and the Restless.” Seriously, when will he ever settle down?

In the years leading up to 2007, the media speculation surrounding Brett Favre’s retirement all seemed so quaint. The legendary quarterback would dangle carrots like, "If I had to pick right now and make a decision, I would say I'm not coming back” and the media followed like trained donkeys. Every offseason brimmed anew with the endless “will-he-or-won’t-he” that Favre so carefully cultivated. In hindsight, the most ironic thing about the yearly roller coaster was that he and those in the media indicated the main reason he was thinking about retirement was because of the allure of the simple life cutting his grass and watching his kids grow up. It all leads me to wonder where that allure is now.

Maybe Favre was waiting for the perfect finale. In 2007, after announcing that he would come back for a 17th NFL season, Favre had a golden opportunity to write his own storybook ending. He was part of a powerhouse, 13-3 Green Bay team that saw home field advantage in the playoffs fall into its lap when the upstart New York Giants beat the Dallas Cowboys, a team the Packers had lost to earlier in the season when both teams were 10-1. The Giants, a team the Packers had previously beaten 35-13, seemed a minor speed bump on the way to Brett’s third Super Bowl appearance.

Despite the home field advantage and a 10-6 halftime lead, the Packers found themselves tied at 20 as the Giants prepared to kick the game-winning field goal. The possibility of Brett’s perfect swan song hinged on a single, 36-yard kick. With no time on the clock, New York kicker Lawrence Tynes’ kick sailed through the frigid Green Bay night.

Wide left.

The game went into overtime. Favre and his quest for the icing on top of his Hall of Fame cake were given new life. After winning the coin toss, Favre had the chance to take control of the extra period and guide his beloved Packers team into the Super Bowl.

Then, as he had done an NFL-record 288 times before, he threw an interception.

It was a crushing end to an excellent season for the Packers, and some would say a fitting end to Favre’s gunslinging career. Sure enough, on March 4th, he decided that that he would retire for good… or so it seemed.

Aside from the disappointing ending to an otherwise spectacular season, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for Favre to hang it up. In 2007, he had been named to his ninth Pro Bowl and pushed his consecutive starts streak to an even more unbelievable 253 games. He had taken what was an 8-8 team the year before and rolled up 13 wins en route to a berth in the NFC Championship. He had broken all of the major career QB records, such as wins and touchdowns. With his legacy intact, he had nothing left to prove.

I guess he thought he did. I guess he still thinks he does.

On some level, part of me says, “Good for Brett.” He still wants to play football and, in this supply-and-demand world, if someone will pay him to play he should play. On the other hand, I often ask myself, “At what point does he realize that his legacy is in shambles?”

If there’s one thing Favre’s hemming and hawing over the last several years has proven, it’s that he likes attention. He begs the media to cover him and then feigns modesty with his “aw, shucks” attitude. In this latest Machiavellian rebirth, Favre has again managed to train the public eye squarely on him. Only this time, the pendulum seems to have swung from sympathy for the venerable veteran who can’t let go to vitriol for the unprofessional turnabout with a chip on his shoulder. Sports Illustrated’s Don Banks labeled him a “Pariah in Purple.” ESPN’s Gene Wojciechowski compared him to Fredo in “The Godfather.” CBSSports.com’s Mike Freeman introduced this fresh take on an old joke:

“What's the difference between Brett Favre and God?

God doesn't think he's Brett Favre.”

Now, all this is not to say that everyone is against Brett Favre. For instance, the fans in Minnesota are treating his arrival like the liberation of France. As SportsCenter anchor John Anderson put it upon Favre’s arrival, “This is a lot like the state fair and the opening of walleye season all rolled into one.” And why shouldn’t they be excited? It’s not often that a team’s head coach rolls up to practice with a Hall of Famer in the backseat.

Despite the seemingly endless back and forth about who’s right, who’s wrong, and who cares in this ongoing saga, the fact is what’s done is done… for the moment. All that remains to be seen is how Favre and his Vikings teammates respond on the field this season. Will he provide the necessary spark from the quarterback position to catapult the Vikings into championship contention? Will he play through an injury and throw 10 interceptions in his last six games? Only time will tell.

The day of Favre’s arrival in Minnesota, ESPN analyst and former Vikings wide receiver Cris Carter spoke at length about Favre’s decision. He was alternately for and against the move, noting Minnesota’s obvious upgrade at the quarterback position while reprimanding the Vikings for their handling of the situation. At one point, he used his career with the Vikings to inject a bit of history into the discussion. “The best team was the ’98 team that I played on… we brought Randall Cunningham out of retirement.”

Sound familiar?

Come to think of it, maybe this chapter of the Brett Favre drama will end just like it started.

Wide left.