Still Here…

Well, I’m still here and as I wrote previously, the dog days of summer haven’t given much to write about. I mean, the Rangers have been doing well (at least compared to what they normally do) but there really is only so much you can say about them. Once NFL training camp gets rolling at the end of this month, I will probably have a few topics to write about. However, I want to express my thoughts on Brett Farve’s recent “about face” in regards to his March 6th retirement.

First off, while I’ve never been a big Farve fan, I do recognize his greatness and respect what he has accomplished over the course of his career. With that being said, I am sick to death of hearing about the teeter-totter soap opera regarding Farve’s future. For the past 3 years (until this year), the minute the off season hit, Farve would “contemplate retirement” only to indicate he would come back for another year in June or July. This basically held the Packers franchise in limbo because they never knew what their plans were at QB until training camp was about to start. And even though I’m not a Packer fan, I think that is just wrong.

I know Farve is one of the all time greats and I know he holds virtually every QB record this is. But dude, make a decision! And when you have, stick to it! Don’t come on ESPN in a teary press conference and announce you are done for good only to completely reverse yourself 4 months later after the Packers have moved on. If this would have been the first time he had done this, then I might understand and wouldn’t really hold it against the guy. I heard Troy Aikman say that it took him 3 years to get that “I still can play, I still want to play” feeling out of his system…and Troy had medical issues (concussions) that forced him to retire. Farve is still relatively healthy so I don’t fault the guy for still wanting to play. I fault him for basically holding the Packers hostage the last few years and then having a big fond farewell only to come back and say just kidding.

Now, the Packers are in a conundrum because half their fan base wants Farve to come back and play for the Cheese Heads and the other half wants the team to move on with Aaron Rogers. Since Farve never signed his retirement papers with the NFL, he technically never retired and his contract is still the property of Green Bay. So the Packers can do one of a few things here: They can 1) bring him back; 2) they can trade him (and Farve would have no say in where he would play); or 3) they can give him an outright release (which Farve wants because they he essentially is a free agent).

And if you’re Aaron Rogers, what are you thinking? This is a kid that was drafted in the first round several years ago to be Farve’s successor. And the only real playing time he has had was this past season in the game vs. the Cowboys…and even then he came in when Green Bay was pretty far behind but played very well in the loss. Rogers only has a couple of years left on his contract and if Green Bay brings Farve back, Rogers may just ask for a trade or a release himself. And even if Green Bay does neither of those, he probably won’t stick around too long when he becomes a free agent…and then Green Bay is really messed.

If I were a Packer fan, there is no way I would want to see #4 playing for any other team but Green Bay. He is a shoe in first ballot Hall of Famer and the thought of him playing for Baltimore, Miami or (heaven forbid) Minnesota or Chicago would turn my stomach. But on the flip side, the fact that he has done this time and time and time again would leave me with a sour taste too. That is why I think half the Packer faithful would like to see him retire…so they don’t have to deal with his off season soap opera again but also so they won’t have to see him in any other uniform.

It’s gonna be interesting to see what happens with this though, that’s for sure.