Riding Favre off into the sunset

Growing up as a life long Chicago Bears fan, I was conditioned to hate the Green Bay Packers. And I did. I hated them when Charles Martin picked up Jim McMahon and slammed him into the ground in 1986. I hated them when, in 1989, Packers QB Don "Magic Man" Majkowski cheated and crossed the line of scrimmage to throw a game-winning touchdown pass against the Bears. I hate (still do) those stupid cheeseheads their fans wear to games.

But while I've hated so much about the Packers over the years, the one thing I could never hate was Brett Favre. Yes, he sliced and diced the Bears throughout most of his career. But he was one of the most enjoyable players to watch on a football field in my lifetime. He was one of the few athletes who realized that he was an adult playing a kid's game, and it showed. No matter the situation, he was always having fun. It was refreshing.

Well, today Brett Favre announced that he was retiring from the NFL. Take a look at the shot of the front page of today's Green Bay Press-Gazette:


Favre played 17 magical seasons, and after last year, it looked like he still had a few more good ones in him. But he was tired, and from what I've seen and heard, it was more mentally than physically. Think about this - during Brett Favre's career, which began in 1992, the Chicago Bears have started 21 different quarterbacks. 21! That's absurd.

It's too bad Brett Favre is retiring. He really was one of the good guys of the NFL. And the one Packer I'm not ashamed to say I enjoyed watching play football.

-JT