The Packer fans have been nothing but classy... I don't get why we need to jump on them like this thread is.
Well, it's going to get interesting when the season starts for real. I think there are "classy" Packers fans on both sides of the Brett issue, but when the Ws and Ls start piling up, classy will go out the window. I have to admit to wanting the Jets to do AT LEAST as well as the Packers, because I don't want the 3 stooges to profit from their behavior. On the other hand, I love the players for the Packers. NONE of this is their fault. Ultimately, things are going to get ugly between the fans and management if the Pack has a bad season, as it should.
Lots of Packer fans turned their backs on Brett and pretty much told him to get the F out of Green Bay. Those fans deserve to get any misery the team gets while the current management is still in place.
With Brett Favre, Are People Forgetting a Legend? I never really understood the word ?fickle,? so I finally looked it up in the dictionary: Fickle: (adj) not constant or loyal. I don?t think there could have been a more appropriate word to describe the comeback of Brett Favre. No, I am not referring to Brett Favre himself as being fickle; I am referring to the fans of football, the front office of the Green Bay Packers, and most surprisingly, those diehard Packer fans that donned No. 4 on their backs every Sunday, watching their so-called ?hero? give his all to get a victory for, not only his team, but to his fans as well. Every football fan out there knew Brett was all about the game. You never heard about Brett demanding more money or going to jail?Brett stayed out of the public eye unless it had something to do with the game he loved most. After Brett Favre retired in March of 2008, football fans everywhere hung their head and showed not only appreciation for one of the league?s most valuable players, but respect. He was a legend, a man in his own league, a man that had so much class and dignity, you could see it through a television screen. I watched his tearful retirement and got a little teary myself, as I knew that HE knew he wasn?t quite ready to throw in the towel, but he did it because he didn?t know if he could give 100 percent to the Green Bay Packers; let?s face it, 100 percent is the only thing Brett Favre knew how to give. But could he really let the last play he ever made be an interception? Some of us might be okay with that being our last play, knowing we would still be going down as one of the greatest QBs of all time, but some of us, most of us, do not have the competitiveness that Favre has. "Competitiveness alone won't win games, but when someone has some skill and then has competitiveness, they have a chance to be good," Irvin Favre, Brett?s father once said. "I knew Brett had a chance. I just did not know what he would do with it." Many football fans, mainly GB ones, were irate at Favre for wanting to be traded to the Minnesota Vikings, calling him selfish and a traitor. Wasn?t it Brett Favre that spoke openly about the Packers being his No. 1 team to play for? So Favre finally spoke out and said, ?If you won?t let me play for you, let me play against you.? Selfish? No. Competitive? Yes. There is a difference. And that difference is what sets him apart from many athletes today. Brett Favre played 16 seasons with the Packers. During his time in Green Bay, he won three consecutive AP MVP awards?the first and only person in NFL history to do so. He has led the Packers to 11 postseason appearances, including seven division crowns, four NFC Championship games, two Super Bowls, and he won Super Bowl XXXI. He ranks first all-time with 160 victories, and also in virtually every significant passing category. Back in March of 2004, Brett was chosen as the No. 1 ?Toughest Guy in America? on the basis of his ?fearlessness, perseverance, a willingness to take a risk, a tolerance for pain, and even a dash of modesty." That was four years ago, and now people are saying he is ?too old to play the game?? Funny how just a year ago, fans everywhere were singing a different tune. I wasn?t aware that after retiring, one of the greatest athletes of all time would be ridiculed for wanting to come back and play for the team, the game, and the fans he loved most. Unfortunately, his comeback was not as welcomed as one would have hoped. He was criticized left and right and was made to feel like more of an inconvenience than a man who dedicated half of his life to the Packers. A man that has started in 253 consecutive games for Green Bay. A man that, learning of his father?s death the night before, took the field and passed for a total of 399 yards and four touchdowns, crediting it all to his Dad: "I knew that my dad would have wanted me to play," Favre said. "I love him so much, and I love this game. It's meant a great deal to me, to my dad, to my family, and I didn't expect this kind of performance. But I know he was watching tonight." He is a man who chooses to play with his heart, no matter what the circumstances are, even if it meant walking away from the team he honored more than most of us will ever know. On Mar. 4, 2008, Favre formally announced his retirement. Favre?s agent, Bus Cook, believed that Favre had not received the impression from the Packers that they wanted him back. Would he still have retired had he felt different? I guess we will never know, but what is clear is where the disloyalty came from in the Packers front office: Ted Thompson. Favre released this statement about his former boss: ?It?s hard for me to, you know, trust, you know, this guy when I...either I?m told one thing and everyone else is told another, or he?s telling the public one thing and telling me another. And so...that?s part of the reason for requesting the release. Not only was I told that playing here was not an option, we?re moving on?it?s kind of in their company line, moving on. That?s OK.? Brett knew he wasn't wanted, so he did what many feared most and filed for reinstatement with the NFL. His petition was soon granted by Commissioner Goodell. Brett was traded to the New York Jets and was no longer a Green Bay Packer. But, being the class act he is, Favre left Green Bay with these words, "I always wanted to be a Packer," he said. "I think I'll always be a Packer. People will say it was the best 16 years. I think it was made clear this offseason that they were moving forward?that's OK ?it's time for me to move forward." Only time will tell if one of football?s greatest athletes will succeed in New York. It still feels so wrong to be writing Brett Favre and New York Jets in the same sentence. But what feels right is that Brett is on that field again. He is following the one thing many of us are too scared to follow because of the risk: He is following his heart. And that is why he will always be a hero. A hero on and off the field and a hero within. Good luck Brett. You truly are an inspiration to athletes everywhere. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/48762-with-brett-favre-are-people-forgetting-a-legend#
The good thing you have going there is that the fans own the team, don't they? You can replace management anytime you want.
I don't live in GB, but I understand there is some sort of voting for Board of Directors periodically, who hire the coachs, GM, etc. So, theoretically, I suppose the shareholders could can the BoD and straighten this mess out.
I wonder if Ted Thompson shows up on their doorstep with a suitcase full of cash to keep his job every year.
TeriB - Your wonderful post says it all. You have so elequently stated what I have been trying to say all along about this whole ordeal. This ordeal has been so tough on all of us. I, too, was very surprised with the way these so called "fickle" people were so quick to turn on him. I believe part of the problem was that the vast majority of the Wisconsin media, for whatever reason, chose to only give one side of the story -- and that side was the three stooges side. My guess is the reason why that occurred goes back to that old saying, "Don't bite the hand that feeds you..." But then again, isn't it a reporter's duty to report all sides???? You will find Brett's true fans (and he has a ton of them, trust me) at his own website, of which I am a member. I know right now they are not taking any new members, but they have added a Jets section and I can tell you that the members there are grateful to you in New York and thank you for taking such good care of him. The one thing I wish for is for all of you to please stop being critical toward the many true blue Wisconsin Favre fans. Feel free to criticize Packer management as much as you want - they DESERVE IT after what they did - we are a good, core group of people who really are rooting for you this year. So when you say things like Green Gay, it hurts.... we (the true fans) have been nothing but supportive and happy for you in New York. Thank you.
Why in the world would he need to do that? The results the man's gotten over the last few years speak for themselves. Jesus christ, he took Mike Sherman's catastrophe from 4-12 to 13-3 and one Favre overtime interception from the Super Bowl in just 2 seasons. Why on Earth would any sane, rational football fan seriously suggest his job's in any danger? The man was named NFL Executive of The Year last year. Who do you think he bribed to win that award? I just hope some of you guys don't get tendinitis from jacking off so hard over this idiot thread. Sure, you can find a lot of Packer fans who are pretty pissed over this, but so what? It's the fucking internet. 10 seconds with Google and you could find stories about people who castrate themselves with rusty pocketknives because they think it will help them lose weight, but that doesn't prove castrating yourself with a rusty pocketknife is a sensible weight loss strategy any more than a few message board posts from some ignorant, semi-literate, alcoholic bratwurst stuffers "prove" that Packer fans as a group are up in arms over the Favre trade or that Ted Thompson's job is in any danger. I just got back from a trip to Wisconsin Monday night, and one of the cities I spent some time in was Green Bay. I spent 2 days there, made a couple of trips to Lambeau and the pro shop (where I got a terrific deal on a Favre jersey), and I asked everyone I met what they thought of the situation - what they thought about management, what they thought about Favre, what they thought about the trade, what they thought about the team's chances this year and going forward - and I can absolutely guarantee you there is nowhere near the animosity toward the front office that a few bitter Favre fans would love for you to believe. And yeah, this was after the Saturday night loss to the Niners. The overwhelming majority of people I talked to support Thompson. I didn't meet a single person who thought he ought to be fired. Most people I spoke with feel pretty much the same way I do - we loved Favre, will always be grateful for what he did for the franchise, but we're convinced that as exciting a player as he is, Favre is an insurmountable liability in the postseason and our only chance of ever winning a championship with this young, promising team is to replace him with a quarterback who may or may not have the potential to be a good playoff quarterback, but who at least has not yet proven that he's a playoff choker. As Favre (god love him) unfortunately has. Most Packer fans know damned well that Aaron Rodgers is going to struggle for much of the first year, maybe all of the first year. We expect it. That's part of developing into a veteran quarterback, and there's just no way around it. It's the price you pay for developing a young QB, and football fans in Green Bay understand that because we went through it 15 years ago with a wild-armed loose cannon named Brett Favre. We've been down this road before, and we liked the way it turned out. We're willing to spend a year or two going down the same road again, because we know enough about football not to panic and start foaming at the mouth because a green kid has a poor pre-season game. Or at least, most Packer fans are smart enough to understand that. If you want to give any sort of credibility to those Packer fans who aren't, well... all I can say is knock yourself out.
Thank YOU for the nice comments. I think history will be on Favre's side. Even now, most people have come to realize who the villain in this was. I was looking at Favre's forum coincidentally and thought about registering. I didn't notice they weren't taking new members. Ah well, maybe you can put in a good word for me.
Funny my family lives in Green Bay and they call BS on "everybody loves Thompson". People are already spreading the "three stooges" title for management there. If they lose to the Vikings a riot will start.
Honestly for the most part green bay fans have been gracious and welcoming...There will always be fans, who will hope for the worst
I don't know who you talked to, but I am from Green Bay and that is not a majority opinion. Two people who clearly disagree with that opinion are Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy, who wanted Favre back before he retired.
Well written post Wild Thing. I think when it comes to Icon's, people let emotion in the way. Our Icon's do things for us like make our shitty week better with a win over a hated team or have some feel good story we attach ourselves to. With Favre he posted incredible figures and always seemed to be the underdog for some reason or another. With his ups and downs and creating thrilling victories out of games the team had no business winning, it was an exciting brand of Football. I think the thing that everyone is most upset about is during the wild ride of Brett's career everyone realizes it's drawing to a close. Everyone watched how close he came to making it to one last Superbowl. Brett being traded to many fans is as deflating as his interception pass in the Nfc final. He has all of the tools to be as effective as he was last year. The team is a year older. The coaches had another off season to prepare. I understand the football decision, and obviously the future is brighter with Aaron Rodgers at the helm rather than Favre. Even in the land of Flip-flopping, Retirement deals, Ari Fliesher, Asking for releases, off and on again retirements, midnight text messages and trade talk. It is hard not to stand behind a guy who for 16 years was the face of a franchise and in alot of ways the face of the NFL. Arguably you can say that the Packers made the right move. For the future I would agree. For the now I disagree. I guess alot of us think its sad to see a star fade on the worlds biggest stage instead of home where he belongs.
Brettgirl73. Thanks for posting your note on this board. Since I started this whole thing I want to apologize for the term Green Gay. It was a poor attempt to be funny. My post was to illustrate the folly of Packer management and the penalty they will pay this year for their ill-advised decision. Packer fans are among the classest fans in the league and in no way was I attempting to say otherwise. In fact, many Packer fans agree that Packer management have mis-managed the situation and are heading for a steep fall into mediocrity. We can unite in our admiration for Brett and our desire for him to succeed.
