Brett Favre and his former team of 16 years – the Green Bay Packers – aren’t exactly the best of friends. The two have smoothed things over considerably after Favre left for the New York Jets in 2008, and then the Minnesota Vikings in 2010; but there’s still a lot of work to be done. The Packers hope they will be able to reach a point where they can retire his jersey in a ceremony celebrating his accomplishments with the team.
In Saturday’s monthly column written by Packers CEO Mark Murphy, he answered a fan’s question regarding the retiring of Favre’s number four jersey. He says that it’s all about the timing:
I am often asked questions about Brett Favre, and specifically whether we will retire his number. Also, there has been quite a bit of speculation in the media about this topic. We do want to bring Brett back into the fold, and plan on retiring his number. He deserves to have his number retired for what he accomplished, and meant to the Packers, during his time here. I thought Aaron Rodgers and Brett jointly presenting the Comeback Player of the Year Award at the NFL Honors program was a great first step. It is really just a question of timing in terms of retiring his jersey. The timing has to be right for both Brett and the organization. Brett will be a first ballot Hall of Famer in 2016, and we would like to retire his number prior to his induction. I know that many of our fans were upset that Brett played for the Vikings. As time goes by, though, I think wounds are healed and people focus more on the great things he did for the team during his 16 years here. As the recent signings by Greg Jennings and Desmond Bishop show, many players in the League go on to play for rivals later in their careers.
In a statement in May from current Packers Quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the player said that he’s confident the team will retire Favre’s jersey.
He’ll get his number retired, and he’ll be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the next few years. It’s important, I think, to make sure that he’s recognized for all the accomplishments that he’s achieved in our organization especially.
Well, the Packers have three more years to formally recognize one of its most important players. It shouldn’t be that hard to repair the relationship between Favre and the Packers, right?
