Brett Favre & 2010 - Why the Packers are making the right move.

A lot has been said about Brett Favre's decision to "un-retire". Unfortunately, Green Bay Packers' management has been receiving most of the criticism.

It's unfair. 

Here's the real heart of the matter. Favre signed a contract during the offseason in March 2001 for a 10-year extension. So, he took the money and now has to honor his contract.

If any of us were in the Packers' front office, we wouldn't grant Favre his release for several reasons.

1)  there's no guarantee about Aaron Rodgers. He may turn into an elite quarterback, but he hasn't proven anything yet. The Packers are still in the business of winning games, and would you rather have Brett Favre as a fantastic backup plan or some no-name QB who has only played a handful of games?

2) there needs to be a rule established in all professional sports that an athlete cannot retire and then un-retire without penalty. here's the real danger of allowing Favre to obtain his release and play for another team. Imagine that you have an elite player who signed a long-term deal that he's unhappy with. What would stop him from "retiring" to get out of his contract, and then "un-retiring" a few months later? that probably was not what Favre did, but giving him his release opens the door to future athletes abusing the system. Let's imagine that an athlete has 3 years left on his contract and retires for a year. when he returns, he should still be under contract for 3 years (not 2). There has to be some contract equity.

3) giving him his release allows another team to benefit at the Packers' expense without the Packers getting anything in return. sorry, but athletes are commodities. if they still have value, you're not just going to give them away.

 So, enough of the bellyaching by Packers' fans. Only one person is truly responsible for this mess and it's Brett Favre. The idea that he would retire, and then have Packers' management fly out to Hattiesburg, MS instead of Favre going to Green Bay to meet with management is ridiculous. It demonstrates a level of arrogance in a player that shouldn't be tolerated.

 Part of the problem is that so many of the fans have bought into the ridiculous idea that players and the owners should be equals. If a team has a bad year, do the players give back part of their salaries?  Do players put in any money into a team? So, there's actually no monetary risk to a player, but managament has to take all the risks.

 Everyone admires Favre for his guts and tough play, but that doesn't mean that he's not just another player trying to manipulate the system to get his way. Yes, it's difficult to be the leader of the team one year and then start the season as a backup the following season. But he chose this way. His decision forced the Packers' to retool their offense to fit Aaron Rodgers. His indecision for the past few years has created a lot of uncertainty about whether or not he'll be back. His indecision has prevented the Packers from coming up with a solid long-term (2-4 year) game plan for how to shape their team for the future.