By Dave Ford

The Brett Favre saga is developing into something so dramatic I just have to address it for a second consecutive week, which is not something I would normally do considering there are so many other topical things to discuss.

Having said that, this is the hottest subject brewing in sports right now.

At first, this “comeback” thing seemed very interesting, nostalgic, romantic even, from a fan’s point of view. But now one week later, Favre is looking more and more like the old guy Green Bay is trying to permanently shut out of its circle. The guy that’s no longer cool enough at the “cool people” table, if you will.

For the past three offseasons, mutterings of Favre’s possible retirement were whispered among the powers-that-be, only to be put to rest with his return. But this time around there’s an awkwardness between both sides like never before.

So what’s really going on here? Is Favre being selfish? Are the Packers acting ungrateful? Are the fans acting irrationally?

Are all parties blowing this out of proportion?

I’ll take all of the above for $200 Alex. That was a Jeopardy reference for those of you like me who enjoy soaking in enough useless information to fill two lifetimes.

Now getting back – Favre made what we all thought was his final decision back on March 6 in a tearful goodbye. It was supposed to be over for good, not for less than four months. The Packers then took a deep breathe and prepared for life after Favre, or A.F. No one, not even the fans can blame the organization for doing so. After all, the NFL is a business not a living hall of fame. Just because he made an indelible mark on the league not to mention the franchise, Favre can’t possibly think or rationalize his thinking that the Packers should just take him back because of who he is. The NFL, like every other major professional sport is all about “What have you done for me lately?” And last I checked, he threw an interception in overtime of the NFC championship game to not only send the New York Giants to Super Bowl XLII, but also effectively end what could have been a storybook season like none he’d ever enjoyed.

Packers general manager Ted Thompson and head coach Mike McCarthy have made a business decision to move on with the unproven Aaron Rodgers. Most are saying that Favre gives the Packers the best chance of winning in this upcoming season, and that Rodgers should step aside and let No. 4 do his thing as he did for the past 16 seasons. Like I’ve said before, as much as I’d like to see Favre run around the field like a little kid and sling the ball across his body to a streaking receiver for yet another touchdown, I truly feel he needs to end all of this nonsense and stay retired.

He doesn’t need to end up as just another athlete far past his prime that didn’t have the real guts to walk away at the right time. He doesn’t need to end up on a football card in any other uniform other than the Packers. The great Johnny Unitas ended his career in San Diego. The man that at one time owned the eyes and ears of not only the NFL but nearly every available young lady in the nation, Joe Namath, ended his days in the sun slumped over on the bench of the Los Angeles Rams. And Favre doesn’t need to end his career on the bench of Arizona, Minnesota, Chicago or the Packers for that matter.
While we all understand his drug is football, Favre needs to check himself and know when to say “when.”  Like Mickey told

Rocky in his first battle with Apollo Creed, “Down, down, just stay down!”
Only this time there will be no rematch. The Packers don’t want one.