Brett Favre (over/under on games played)?

[buzzsaw]

The media is all over the fact that the packers organization will probably have to pull the plug on the Favre "going out on top" tour fairly soon in order to get A. Rodgers some playing time and season the young fella for their future aspirations. I'm guessing that they will have seen enough blowout losses (not neccessarily Favre's fault) by turkey day that Rogers will start the first game after Thanksgiving.... what week do you guys think?

[Down to Earth]

Buzzsaw,

As long as he is healthy, which may be an issue by Thanksgiving if not sooner, I think Favre will still be the starter. I think what you may see more of is end of game playing or even splitting series between the two. Like I said in another thread, I don't know why Rogers did not get into the game yesterday.

[jbell1981]

I heard on kfan this evening that there is a rumor floating around that Farve may want out and retire soon. Maybe he couldn't handle getting chased all over the place. We will have to wait and see if there is any truth to this, but I know if I were him I would want out.

[jbtwins24]

so why would farve deside to play one more year then say he wants to retire? come one everybody knows that this is his last year and hes going to out ahead or he'll die tryen. just like last weeks game, it didnt really seem like he lost that much. i do know hes going to have a hard to this monday night but hey he'll have fun. now on him starting, i bet that after thanksgiving he wont be starting, he knows whats going to be good for the packers as for the long turm and its going to be more of a rebuilding year so they other qb needs some playen time. i dont think hes getting sick and tired of being chased all over because why would he go out and make acouple blocks himself? now how many other qbs do you see that goes out and block, not that much.

[buzzsaw]

A little cut and paste on Brett favre from ESPN:

There are 44 seconds remaining at Lambeau Field. The Packers, trailing 23-20, are on the St. Louis 11-yard line, close to a dramatic last-second win. The crowd roars at military afterburner decibels. Brett Favre takes the snap, he drops back, and -- fumbles, St. Louis ball, game over.

At the risk of quoting myself -- Oscar Wilde said, "I often quote myself, it adds spice to the conversation" -- let me reiterate what I wrote about Favre a year ago: "We'd like to think stellar athletes go out in glory, and occasionally this happens. Yet in many cases legendary athletes depart on a bummer note. In Dan Marino's final game, the Dolphins lost 62-7. In Larry Bird's final game, the Celtics were knocked out of the playoffs as Bird played poorly. On Jim Kelly's final snap, he fumbled in opposing territory late in the Bills' only playoff defeat in Ralph Wilson Stadium history. In Jerry Rice's final game, he had no receptions as his team lost in the playoffs. In Michael Jordan's final game, his team lost by 20 points.

"For more than a decade, Favre has been a joy to watch and a darling of the football gods. But now his powers are declining, and when great athletes begin to lose abilities they once had, many find this hard to face. For the great athlete, everything in life has been an upward arc -- through youth, college, the pros and finally national renown, things just keep getting better. Then suddenly things stop getting better and performance begins to decline. In Kelly's final season, he threw a bad interception at the goal line in a close loss and came off the field repeating aloud over and over, 'I don't understand it.' The phrase 'I don't understand it' must run through the heads of many stellar athletes as their abilities deteriorate and the curtain call approaches. This thought must be running through Favre's head now."

Steve Levin/WireImage.com

We were quarterbacks once, and young.We idealize the story of the gifted young athlete rising to acclaim, because it's a story in which everything gets better and better: humble roots, initial success, finally fame and wealth. We don't like to think that such stories end with the athlete in decline, because this means the promise of youth has worn out and reminds us that we all ultimately face mortality.

Soon novice Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy will face a dilemma he surely dreads: whether to bench his famed quarterback. Favre has 403 career touchdown passes, and needs 18 more to take the all-time touchdown pass record away from Marino. Since the Packers are unlikely to have a winning season, surely most of the state of Wisconsin wants to see Favre play every snap of his farewell year and bring home the all-time record. But a case can be made for handing the ball to Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay's quarterback of the future, and letting Rodgers get some experience so that 2007 might be a winning season for the Packers. Marino's final season was a playoff year, so he set the touchdown pass record honorably in sports terms, in the course of propelling his team to a postseason berth. If Favre stays on the field merely to break a record, Packers fans will be glad, but the record could have some of the feeling of a stunt. Should the Packers be 2-6 a month from now, the dignified thing would be for Favre to remove his helmet and hold the clipboard for Rodgers.

[lawdog]

The over/under on number of games he plays this year is a lot higher than the over/under on the number of games he plays WELL!!!!

I'd say they'll keep letting him start and extending that streak but soon that's all he will be doing, starting and playing maybe a quarter and then riding the pine...

[Eric Wettschreck]

Heck, I hope Favre starts every game and plays all game every game for Green Bay.

Then, I hope he holds Green Bay hostage in the off season like he did last year.

The Vikings are mediocre at best, we need every little bit of help we can get.

[Down to Earth]

Quote:

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Heck, I hope Favre starts every game and plays all game every game for Green Bay.

Then, I hope he holds Green Bay hostage in the off season like he did last year.

The Vikings are mediocre at best, we need every little bit of help we can get.

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He did not hold the team hostage last off season. The Packers would not have approached free agency nor the draft any differently, so I don't know where people are getting that idea. From the media I suppose.

Buzz, I think your articles are pretty right on. There have been a couple of blowout games I think Rodgers should have been playing in. I'm not saying he should be starting every game, but if the game is "out of reach" they should at least be giving him some time in the 4th quarter. Thompson and McCarthy need to realize that this is a rebuilding year, regardless of what they say it is, and so they should be giving Rodgers more time. I'm guessing one the Packers are "officially" out of the playoff hunt Rodgers may be getting some more on field reps.