OK, time for my first sports related post. I grew up in Appleton Wisconsin, about forty-five miles from Lambeau Field and have been a Packer Fan for my whole life. My earliest sports related memories revolve around The Green Bay Packers. On Sundays, We used to rush home from church in order to make it home in time to see the start of the Packer game. The problem for me was that I missed the glory days of the Lombardi Era. The first Packer Coach I remember was Phil Bengston, not exactly a household name. Anyway, it didn't matter, The Packers were my team and I loved them. My brothers had legends like Bart Starr, Willie Wood, Paul Hornung, Forrest Gregg and Jimmy Taylor to cheer for, while I had non-legends like Jim Del Gaizo, Paul Ott-Carruth, John Spillis and Dave Roller. They were Packers and I was the eternal optimist. Every year was going to be "the" year. There were glimmers of hope, like 1972, when they actually made the playoffs, but for the most part, Green Bay was looked at as the worst team in the NFL.
This all changed in 1992. The Packers started a turn around that has seen them become one of the most consistent winners in the NFL. One of the key pieces of this dramatic change was Brett Favre. He brought a swagger, confidence and love for the game that helped the Green Bay Packers return from the depths of mediocrity to two consecutive Super Bowl appearances including a Victory in Super Bowl 31.
No one loved Brett Favre more than me. I appreciated his dedication and loved watching his sometimes frustrating improvisations on the field. I will always remember his inspirational performance against Oakland few days after his father died. However, since about 2004, Packer fans have been subjected to a yearly soap opera revolving around his possible retirement. I thought it was over last year after he was traded to the Jets. Unfortunately, Favre will not go quietly into the night. After retiring for the second time, he has decided to play for the Packers hated rival, The Minnesota Vikings. This is an obvious attempt to get back at the Packers for not worshipping at the Favre Temple. I believe that true Packer Fans realize that Favre has become the Prima Donna that is all to common in professional sports. While I will always appreciate his accomplishments while with the Packers, I was a Packer fan before Favre and will remain one after Favre. His leaving will not change that. As a matter of fact, I have a little wishlist to share with you.
1) I want Favre to play for the Vikings!
2) I want ESPN to set up camp outside their training camp.
3) I want reporters to ask their players and coaches a million stupid questions about playing with a legend and if they feel extra pressure now.
4) I want Childress to design their offense around Favre and not around Adrian Peterson.
5) I want both their other QB's to publicly question why there isn't an open competitionfor the Starting QB spot.
6) I want them both to eventually demand to be traded
7) I want ALL Wisconsin Favre Fans to be made to wear Purple Number 4 Jerseys so that we can tell them from "real" Packer fans!
8) I want the Vikings Owner to give him his own Private Parking spot and Locker room
9) I want to see the reaction of Viking fans the first time Favre costs them a game making a bonehead decision or throwing a stupid interception! It probably would be too much to ask for it to be against Green Bay!
and finally...(for the real Packer trivia nuts)
10)I want Green Bay to get Charles Martin to come out of retirement for the October 5th game!
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