MILWAUKEE -- Brett Favre says he's tempted to show up at the Green Bay Packers' training camp just to call the team's "bluff."
When I was in high school, I worked a large retail organization and daily dreamed of my triumphant exit and elaborate display of "I'm soo out of here!" I pictured myself walking through the store knocking over piles of folded turtleneck shirts that I had previously spent hours and days continually refolding after the old ladies would come in and hold up every size and leave them laying. I imagined that I would scream, "this place is horrible, I quit" while kicking open the door to security, tossing my name tag and holding up two fingers in classic "peace out, homies" attitude.
Of course, when my final days actually occurred, I politely cleaned out my last fitting room, hugged my coworkers and rode off into the sunset in an honorable manner. While my dream scenario would be entertaining, I knew the coworkers that I actually liked would be the ones that would have to clean up my mess and not the evil management and old lady posse that actually caused me to develop the plan.
Brett Favre is choosing the messy direction for his final decent out of professional football. Instead of leaving the world under the impression he was the greatest thing to touch a football in Green Bay for decades, a true hall of fame world class guy - he's knocking over sweaters and leaving a trail of destruction that his teammates will end up cleaning up and not the management that he is projecting his attitude towards.
I completely understand that it's that time of year, he has the itch to play, but really you can't play forever, that's not how the NFL works.
But from a PR perspective - his choice of action to fulfill his own desires to play is making him appear selfish and not in true "Everybody Loves Favre" fashion. If the Packers release him and grant his wish out of the goodness of their hearts, he could land as their backyard rival. Why would they want to unleash their own best asset against them? If he comes back, actually "calls their bluff" and stays with the Packers, he adds another year to the yank and chain of Aaron Rodgers, the whole team and the future of franchise.
All in all, this whole fiasco is not good for the overall Favre brand. I know it's his life and he can choose to do what he wants to with it, but he is also a public figure and role model, so yeah, I say the rules are going to be different for him, just like they are for the entire population of professional athletes. Not to mention he could have done other things to satisfy his desire to be part of the game - like coach, young kids or high school. He would still get to participate in the sport, be competitive and bestow his gifts on another generation that already look up to him.
