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The Chance To Make History: Why Packers Fans Should Applaud Brett Favre
Published: October 29, 2009
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When Brett Favre steps out of the tunnel and onto the green grass of Lambeau Field Sunday, it will be as loud a reception as he’s ever received in the 19 seasons he’s played in the NFL.
But for the first time on the hallowed grounds in Green Bay, Favre will be stepping out in a uniform not made of green and yellow.
So the question remains: What will Favre’s reception be, cheers or jeers?
Sunday’s game between the Green Bay Packers (4-2) and the Minnesota Vikings (6-1) is a game deserving of hype in and of itself. It’s for the top spot in the NFC North. It’s between two of the biggest rivals in the NFC. It features two potential Super Bowl contenders.
But add Brett Favre into the mix and you get a game reaching the verge of legendary status even before the first kickoff is boomed through the Wisconsin air.
Many Packers fans have been on record saying they will refuse to cheer for Favre. Not during the pre-game introductions, not the first time his scruffy face is shown on the scoreboard, and certainly not the first time he sets foot on Lambeau’s grass in visitor’s garb.
“It was hard enough to see him with the Jets. But to see him in purple?” Packers fan Tammy Rainville told The Associated Press. “I still believe he belongs to us.”
What Tammy and the countless other cheeseheads that echo her sentiments fail to realize, however, is they will never have a chance to honor Favre the way they can on Sunday evening.
Yes, he pulled your organization and fan base around like a rag doll during three different offseason retirement debacles. Yes, he signed with a division rival two years after leaving the Pack behind. Yes, he’s the most influential figure in your franchise’s history now playing for one of your biggest enemies.
But, quite simply I ask you, so what?
For the (I would argue) minor negatives Favre has brought the Packers organization in the past half-decade or so, aren’t the 16 special seasons Favre spent in Green Bay worth more than that?
Favre brought Packers fans never-before-seen joy from the first moment he laced up in Lambeau in 1992. He racked up 160 of the franchise’s 637 total wins. He broke countless records, warmed countless hearts, and even produced a Super Bowl title in 1996.
For all of the stats Favre put up while cementing his legacy in Green Bay, most Packer fans will tell you that it wasn’t even about the numbers most of the time.
“It was just fun watching him grow up in front of our eyes,” said Tim Feely, my father and a lifelong Packer fan. “He went from brash young kid to scruffy old man, and we were there to see the whole thing.”
As for the negative things, I’d be willing to argue Packers fans are furthering the pain by hanging on too long to something that isn’t there at all. When Favre wanted to come back to the Packers before the 2008 NFL season and after his second retirement, general manager Ted Thompson did the right thing in trading away the aging quarterback, and with that, the conflict between Packer fans and Favre could have ceased.
The Packers have a bright future with emerging star Aaron Rodgers. Instead of realizing how lucky they are to have another franchise quarterback come in hot on Favre’s heels, Packers fans have become obsessed with Favre’s post-Packer escapades. Believe me, coming from a lifelong Bills fan: never take a young, talented quarterback for granted.
Packers fans have a rare opportunity to do the right thing on Sunday afternoon.
Say what you will about all of the hard-working, fun-loving cliches surrounding the polarizing quarterback—and I’m sure even the truest of Favre fanatics can admit the retirement shenanigans are tiresome-but there is no denying Favre’s positive impact on the Packer franchise and fan base.
So, I challenge you, Lambeau faithful, to give Favre your loudest and best applause when he steps out of the tunnel on Sunday afternoon. A chance to honor a legend while he’s still playing on the field is truly both a rare and memorable occasion.
When Favre left Lambeau for the last time in a Packer uniform, it wasn’t a proper goodbye, losing to the Giants in the 2007 NFC Championship Game.
Goodbyes are often difficult, mostly awkward, and rarely memorable.
When Packers fans look back on this game in twenty years, it will be remembered in one of two ways. As the day they booed the franchise’s legendary figure out of Lambeau Field, or as one of the greatest farewells in sports history.
The choice is yours, Green Bay. Make the right one. Opportunities like this come along once in a franchise’s lifetime.
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