Brett Favre Retires

by Sean Yuille on Mar 4, 2008 2:01 PM EST in News

Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre has decided to retire after 17 seasons in the NFL.

The Green Bay Packers have confirmed a story first reported by FOXSports.com that Brett Favre, the NFL's all-time career passing leader, has decided to retire.

"Brett Favre has informed us of his intention to retire from the Green Bay Packers and the NFL," Packers GM Ted Thompson said in a statement released by the team. "He has had one of the greatest careers in the history of the National Football League, and he is able to walk away from the game on his own terms -- not many players are able to do that.

"The Packers owe him a tremendous debt of gratitude. He has given Packers fans 16 years of wonderful memories, a Super Bowl championship among them, that will live on forever. ... The uniqueness of Brett Favre -- his personality, charisma and love of the game -- undoubtedly will leave him as one of the enduring figures in NFL history."

As a Lions fan, the first thought that came to my mind was "finally." Brett Favre has been thinking about retirement the last few years, but only now has he chosen to call it a career. This is a huge relief to all teams in the NFC North as he has been a great QB for so many years.

With Favre hanging up his cleats, Aaron Rodgers will step in to be the starter of the Packers. It is a tough act to follow, but Rodgers did look good when he filled in for an injured Favre against the Dallas Cowboys last season. Even if that may be true, Rodgers is no Favre. Conventional thinking would suggest that a Rodgers-led Packers will have a tough season ahead of them. And even if they don't, there is no way Green Bay will be as good as they were in 2007.

For the Lions, Brett Favre retiring means that Detroit finally may be able to win a game at Lambeau Field. Detroit's chances of winning against the Packers should go up at Ford Field a decent amount, but on the road a substantial amount. Any game at Lambeau late in the season (when Detroit usually plays at Green Bay) is tough to win with the weather conditions being as bad as they are, so Favre being gone doesn't mean Detroit will be victorious for sure. It does, however, mean that beating the Packers on the road should get easier considering the Lions haven't won there since Favre became the starter, so hopefully we'll see a "W" for a change next season.

Even as a Lions fan, I do have to say that I respect the hell out of Brett Favre. He is one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play in the NFL and will be remembered for a lot of great things. I know that Packers fans probably feel like they got kicked in between the legs today, but for Lions fans, we are glad to see Favre go as he is such a good player.

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enough favre already

As you might imagine, it's wall to wall Brett Favre talk over here in Wisconsin. It's kinda funny, some fans are saying how he should have retired two years ago, and then the Packers would have had a tested, third year qb in Aaron Rodgers leading the Pack as they improved, instead of having to turn to him now, with only 59 passes in his career, to try and get Green Bay past the overtime of the NFC Championship game hurdle.

As a guy long sick of the hagiographic treatment Favre gets, I'm hoping the Packers pull something like the Giants this year, and go and win the Super Bowl a year after the legend quits, the way New York shook off Tiki Barber's retirement. That would be funny to me.

As a Lions fan, it'd be nice to see the Pack come back to the field, but Ted Thompson has put togetehr a pretty solid nucleus up there in Green bay. As of today, if I had to lay a wager, I'd bet on Aaron Rodgers winning a NFC North crown in his first season under center.

by ahtrap on Mar 5, 2008 11:57 AM EST 0 recs

I'll miss him

I saw the news: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,334811,00.html , When I saw it, I am really surprised and sad. Brett has given us 17 years of awesome football. One of his fans's book tells it: http://dealstudio.com/searchdeals.php?deal_id=88465&ru=279 , Now I think he can have enough time for his family. May he have as much happiness in his future as he has given us. God Bless Brett and his family. Thank You Brett!!!

by charlebyo on Mar 6, 2008 6:36 AM EST 0 recs