Bob Harlan is a hero to Green Bay Packer fans and I would normally want to hear everything he has to say about the most storied franchise in the National Football League. But when it comes to his opinion on the current situation surrounding Brett Favre, I couldn’t care less what the team’s former president and CEO has on his mind. That’s because he wasn’t really around during the summer of ’08 when old No. 4 took a big No. 2 on the entire organization.
Therefore, it’s easier for Harlan to forgive Favre and welcome him back to the family. He wasn’t called called a liar on national TV. He wasn’t jeered at practice. And his job wasn’t disrupted on a daily basis. That happened to GM Ted Thompson, quarterback Aaron Rodgers and coach Mike McCarthy, and until those men are ready to embrace Favre once again, nobody else’s opinion really matters.
Speaking of which, I’m getting tired of reading stories about how Favre isn’t ready to mend fences with the organization yet. He’s not ready? Are you kidding me?! The only way he should ever be allowed to step foot inside Lambeau Field again is if he’s willing to make a public and heartfelt apology. Not to the fans, but to the people he really hurt four years ago. Let’s see him apologize to Thompson, Rodgers and McCarthy. Then, and only then, should anyone even start thinking about planning a retirement ceremony for an incredibly selfish human being who managed to tear apart in months the reputation he had built over a decade and a half.
Michael – Agree 100% on all counts and this has always been my take on Favruh. That said, it is all about the money and the marketing value the ‘ol dongslinger brings to the franchise. The Packers (Murphy) will compromise principles for profit. Thompson, Rodgers and McCarthy will all continue to take the high road. I can’t wait to be in the audience when they retired his number to half a stadium of boo birds… I will be leading the charge – unless the sincere apology you mentioned and I have believed is needed since this all happened actually occurs. And Brent ain’t the apologizing type…
You’re absolutely right. Furthermore, Favre is such an egomaniac that he no doubt believes he is the one owed the apology. He would also no doubt expect to be paid for his appearance in Green Bay. Harlan is however to be applauded for admitting his mistake in promoting Sherman to GM.
Big Bob Harlan fan here. I applaud you for taking such a strong and principled stance against Favre. I’d go further than most, I’d deny him every Packer honor that he thinks he is owed. Only that will make him realize his mistake someday and only then will certain folks get the heartfelt apology they deserve. Only then can we all be one again.
I have very mixed feelings when it comes to Favre. I can’t hate him like so many do after loving him for so many years. After all that time his ego obviously got blown out of control and he thought he could just come and go, or retire and unretire as he pleases. Going to the Vikings was just the worst thing he could have ever done. But realistically, where else was he going to go? He wanted to win a super bowl, they were the perfect fit, and he damn near did it at 40 years old. I hate to find out that he is such an egotistic asshole after all these years, but we can’t complain. It was really the best thing to ever happen to the organization. It really sucks for him a lot more than it sucks for the Packers. Bottom line, he will never apologize. I just don’t agree with booing him. I think we should pay respect to what he did for the 17 years he was here.
BTW no disrespect to anyone’s opinions, I know it’s a touchy subject. I’ve been reading every post on this website for over 2 years now and I love it. Thanks a lot.
I agree with right on Rodney. I did love this guy for what he did for us, however that was all thrown away when he crapped on everyone. The apology should be to everyone, because we all went through this. I still remember all the purple #4 wearing turncoats that I still remind they are forever viking fans. I still remember him saying this viking team is the most talented team I have been on. If only Reggie could have come down and kicked his butt. I have said for two years now that when they retire his jersey I am buying a ticket and booing the crap out of him. Go away and stay away traitor.
Harlan was the best thing to happen to GB, he hired Wolf and Thompson. History will eventually show that he was not the best GB QB either, if it isn’t apparent already.
What do you think Harlan is going to say? He’s a gentleman like Bart Starr. He’s never going to come out in the press and say negative things about anyone.
Even Favre.
It’s hard to argue with the premise of the article, but I might be leaning a bit more towards Harlan’s approach. This story reminds me more of the prodigal son parable. The parallel’s are eerily similar up to this point except perhaps Favre isn’t broke, starving, and envying pigs (there is probably a joke there given the Mississippi background). If there was a heartfelt apology (and a few actions that truly demonstrated remorse) that demonstrated regret for the way the split happened, perhaps I go towards the behavior of the father in the story and I paraphrase: our former QB, who was dead is now alive and we must celebrate his return. MM, TT, and AR are men of character, and I would bet they could follow suit.
I’m ready to forgive Farve and I don’t need a full blown apology from him. I’d be good with a little remorse and sincere regret on how his actions contributed to the divorce. Maybe that is too quick to forgive but I’d like to remember back to some really special Favre memories and games and not have those memories tainted because reconciliation hasn’t occurred yet.
Michael-
I am beginning to understand your view on Favre, and I think I understand why you and a lot of other Packer fans going to hold Favre accountable for how he left and what he did after he left. I can only think of two comparisons that make the Favre’s conduct less egregious than it seems: (1) This looked a lot like a very messy divorce. And I have every reason to think that Favre >loved< the Packers and had grown to expect that love to be returned. Right or wrong, he felt betrayed (I would say wrong, but the feeling of betrayal is just as real and understandable). And he acted just like a betrayed spouse in a divorce. That gets really, really ugly.
(2) I have seen first hand a lot of situations where new management comes into an organization, and I have seen very few cases where the "direct reports" have felt good about what followed. New management owes the old guard nothing. They have usually been brought in to change things. They have their own ideas about how things should be run. They know nothing about the history of how things have been done, who is who, or who owes who for past service. Favre was a marked man the day TT took over. The Aaron Rodgers pick was an announcement that Favre was on notice (remember, LOTS of other teams passed on AR, yet TT did not). And when Mike Sherman was replaced, Favre's days were surely numbered. Rumor has it that MM actually wanted to pull Favre at half time in the NFC championship game (in retrospect, probably he should have). I have no idea what saw and heard every week as slights and signs that he was no longer "The Man." But he sure acted like he was getting those messages. The year he brought the Packers to the NFC championship was as amazing a season as any he played for Green Bay. That was a team that, without Favre, should have had a W-L record under .500 (as did many of the previous teams Favre QB'd to winning seasons and playoff berths). And he took them to the NFC championship. He played that season like we saw with the Vikings and Jets (remember, before he was injured, the Jets were playoff bound). He played like he felt slighted and unappreciated. He played like he was going to show somebody who they were dealing with. My bet is he and TT and MM never got along and the Packers made it to that NFC championship despite all that because Favre forced the issue (Remember the 5 receiver sets that year? Completely new to Green Bay. A desperation concession to Favre when the season seemed lost). Egotistical? You bet. Childish? Probably. But for over 30 years, that's the character every coach cultivated and used to motivate this guy to some of the most amazing football that anyone has ever seen played. So, when Favre acted out, forced the issue with TT and MM, and then acted like someone betrayed and humiliated after all he gave them, it shouldn't be too surprising. He loved Green Bay and expected the organization to love him forever. Physically, he sacrificed for the team in ways Green Bay fans had rarely seen, ever. For years since Holmgren left, Favre had been given free reign, treated like a star who didn't need coaching or discipline, and who was above the team.
Favre did bad things. And he hurt people in the organization (not fans, but real people). Maybe it will take some more years for all this to settle down. But there are a lot of really ugly divorces and a lot of really bad re-organizations where the people have forgotten the bad and the ugly and have even forgiven it. BF and GB ought to fall into that pattern as well.
I appreciate your views. Replies like this are why I always encourage my readers to leave comments.
The year he brought the Packers to the NFC championship was as amazing a season as any he played for Green Bay. That was a team that, without Favre, should have had a W-L record under .500 (as did many of the previous teams Favre QB’d to winning seasons and playoff berths). – Saguaro
Your overall memory of Packer history is typical – all Favre and nobody else.
Here are a few insights. You speak as if TT was some sort of interloper in Packer history. In fact he was hired three weeks before Favre was traded for, and earned two promotions during the mid-90′s hey day to become Wolf’s right hand man, before going out to Seattle to help Holmgren build the best Seahawk Era they’ve had. Or is it a coincidence that where ever TT has been teams are making NFCCG’s and Super Bowls?
And specifically pertaining to the quote above. It may interest you to know that the Packers have had the second most potent roster over the last 20 years (including the 16 years Favre was around). This is based on pro-football-reference’s AV (approximate value) calculation. Also, the Packers had had Brunell and Hasselbeck as replacement value for Favre, and it may interest you to know that since 1991 there have been only nine QB’s come into the league (and only 28 QB’s ever) to have had 4,500 attempts, and THREE of those came through the Packer organization – Favre, Brunell, and Hasselbeck. Last, you easily seem to forget or ignore (and we know what that word is the root of) that the all time leading rusher in team history and all time leading receiver in team history came through in the 2000′s, the lion’s share with Favre. In fact, that 2001-2004 window of opportunity Ahman Green was more valuable than Favre – more to the point Green has the 8th best yards from scrimmage, of the hundreds of skill position players, in 2003, but since it had nothing to do with Favre it merely got swallowed up under The Shadow.
So, it really is rather silly to say that a team that had the highest W/L % from 1992-2007, and the highest W/L against playoff teams played in the regular season, was all due to one man. Was he a team star? Yes, but to insinuate that NOTHING could have come from Wolf’s GM’ing and Holmgren’s coaching, and the six assistant coaches that went on to be headcoaches (and including Holmgren three of whom went on to take other teams – without Favre believe or not – to the Super Bowl), or Brunell and/or Hasselbeck is nonsense. This constant running down of one the best franchises over the last two decades to cover up Favre’s 59.5 composite QB rating in 6 playoff washout games from 1998-2007 must end (of course he did vault that composite QB rating up to 60.1 with that NFCCG washout in 2009 with the Vikings).
Favre is a HOF no doubt. But that is primarily off of his regular season stats using very talented teams for the most part, and a great system/scheme from Holmgren (even under Sherman as it was the one being used in his tenure, modified by Ahman Green’s abilities). Favre was a poor post season player (or at least radically mediocre as he was early in his career where he struggled). And it’s worthy of praise, or at least it was. When Favre believed that the basic three choice conundrum that faced all players, even the stars, who are under contract – play for the team as they desire, retire, or demand a trade to a mutually agreeable team. Favre thought he was due an option D and E – be de facto GM to construct the team his way (D) or snap his fingers and have his contract go up in a puff of smoke (E). And all this singular credit nonsense fuels that belief from the fan base that still apologizes for Favre and his behavior. Favre did not face any issues that Aikman or Staubach or Fouts or Moon or Kelly did not face. He thought that special rules applied to him. But he was wrong. No amount of running down the team to puff up Favre changes that.
I agree with Michael regarding Favre with one modification: In addition to owing Thompson, McCarthy and Rodgers an apology, I believe Favre should include Packers fans.
I disagree with Saguaro’s notion that Favre was a “marked man” the day Thompson took over. Remember about a month after Favre voluntarily retired in March of 2008, he vacillated yet again and contacted the Packers. The Packers were ready at that time to welcome him back and were going to send a plane to bring him to Green Bay. Of course Favre changed his mind again. It was only after Aaron Rodgers was ensconced as the team leader and (of course) after all the offseason activities before training camp were completed that Favre pushed to return. The whole mess was entirely on Favre in my opinion. If he had told the Packers in March of 2008 he was returning, or if he had decided in April of that year to return, he would have remained the starting QB of the Packers.
Favre did not contradict the fact of his April 2008 vacillation in his interview with Greta. And consider this from Ted Thompson’s point of view: Favre said in the Greta interview that in his first meeting with Thompson as GM, he was telling him which personnel moves to make. At the time, Favre himself hadn’t committed to playing the 2005 season yet he was telling his boss’ boss how to do his job. In my opinion, Favre didn’t just have a “big head”, like some foolish Packers fans he thought he was bigger than the franchise. That was Thompson’s first encounter with him as GM. And keep in mind, Favre had been playing the “Beg me not to retire” game since after the 2002 season. In spite of all that and Favre “suggesting” who Thompson should hire as head coach in 2006, Thompson was willing to welcome Favre back in April, 2008.
To Dalton who asks, “But realistically, where else was he going to go?” I would answer, if he just wanted to play for the love of the game, he could have stayed in New York. Instead, he lied to them about retiring so he could “stick it” to Thompson and the Packers.
Favre was a great QB, but I have no respect for him as a man. Even so, if he issues a sincere apology to Thompson, McCarthy, Rodgers and Packers fans I would welcome him back into the Packers fold.