Aaron Rodgers, Get Ready To Be Held To Impossible Standards Sir

As we wave goodbye to Brett Favre and his great career, we leave you with a tearjerker from a fan who has followed him since his tiny head popped out of the womb. Tony Markovich brings us what it was like to be a fan of the one we know as....Why is that guy's name spelled like that? Shouldn't the V and the R be switched? Man what the hell?


Since I can remember, I have been a fan of the Packers. This comes as a surprise considering that I grew up just thirty minutes outside of Chicago with a father who was a Bears fan. But looking back when I first started watching football, how could I not like Brett Favre and the Pack? As a child who didn’t have any allegiances yet, I was going to root for the team and players I liked to watch. It just so happened that I liked the team in the NFL that was most hated by Bears fans. After watching Brett Favre’s style of play (the hair-pin passes, the 70 yard bombs off his back foot, the falling underhand tosses through 3 linemen) I was hooked. I knew from then on I would be a wearing one of those goofy looking foam wedges of cheese on my head for the rest of my life. From a fan’s perspective this turned out to be a great decision, as I would be able to follow one of the greatest people to ever touch a football.

When Favre first came out Southern Mississippi to enter the draft, he was ironically not the first quarterback drafted in 1991; Dan McGwire was by the Miami Dolphins. The same Dan McGwire that threw 2 touchdowns, 6 interceptions and a total of 745 yards to end his 5 year career with a 52.3 passer rating. Think the Dolphins looked back on that decision? Brett Favre was actually drafted 33rd overall in the second round by the Atlanta Falcons, who also made a franchise changing decision when they traded Favre to the Packers, just 1 season and 5 passes later.

It was on a September day in 1992 that Favre finally got to play after Don Majkowski got injured against Cincinnati. Unfortunately for Don, Favre led the Packers to a comeback win and took over the starting job later that season. From there, he began an era and perhaps the greatest career ever played.

In Favre’s illustrious career, there are so many great games and stories it is hard to single out just a few, but I will pick out some that are vivid in my memory. Of course, the first that comes to mind is Favre leading the Packers to the Super Bowl in 1997. The Pack played the New England Patriots, led by Drew Bledsoe. This was definitely my favorite Packers team with players like Desmond Howard (who won Super Bowl MVP with a 99 yard kick return and 90 yard punt return), Reggie White (RIP), Antonio Freeman, Dorsey Levens, and Mark Chmura. After scoring 17 unanswered points the Packers went on to win 35-21. The next year the would make it back to the Super Bowl thanks to Favre’s 3rd straight league MVP, but sadly lost to a solid Denver Broncos team lead by some guy named John Elway.

Another great memory I have of Brett was on a very emotional Monday night. If you don’t already know what I’m talking about you should probably rethink your status as a true NFL fan. Just the day before this Monday night game, Brett’s father passed away from a heart attack. Instead of taking time off, Brett decided to dedicate the game to his dad. Brett literally played his heart out and had one of the most memorable games in NFL history, going for 399 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 41-7 route of the Raiders. As tears streamed from Brett’s eyes as he walked off the field at Network Associates Coliseum, I think everyone knew that his father had been watching his son play that game and appreciated Brett’s incredible dedication to him.

Now, this game played in 1995(his first MVP season) against the Chicago Bears may not be remembered as often as it should be, but it certainly epitomizes Brett Favre and his unmatched will to play the game. One week after severely spraining his ankle, Brett threw for 336 yards and a career-high five touchdown passes in a 35-28 victory against the Packers archrivals. This game was just one of countless times Brett played through pain and agony to reach his NFL record 275 consecutive starts, including the playoffs.

Speaking of records, I am pretty sure Favre has every record a quarterback can possibly own. He has most TD passes (442), most passing yards (61,665), attempts (8,758), completions (5,377) wins by a starting QB (160), consecutive starts by a QB (253, 275 including playoff games), and most MVP awards (3).

Now I know all you haters, whom I don’t really know any, are going to point out his final record of most interceptions with 288. You are also going to say that anybody who has a 17-year career is going to eventually break these records because he played so long. While he did play for a very long time, nobody could break these records in the style or manner that Brett did. The reasons he has so many interceptions is because he was willing to go for it all. He was willing to take a chance and do anything in order to win the game that he lived for. Even if somebody does ever exceed these numbers, there is nobody who can match the passion and competitiveness that Favre played with. This man still at the age of 38 and after 17 tiring seasons in which he put his heart, soul, and entire life into, still has the childlike personality to throw a snowball at Donald Driver during this year’s division round playoff game against the Seahawks (which they won in the midst of a classic blizzard at the legendary Lambeau Field). There is no player that has ever loved the game more or had more fun playing the game than Brett Lorenzo Favre (that’s right his middle name is Lorenzo).

Finally, just for fun, I will leave you by showing you what Favre actually did for the football program at Green Bay. In the 16 years before Favre arrived, the Packers had zero divisional titles, one 10-win season, one playoff win, and a .406 winning percentage. In the 16 seasons WITH Favre as the man behind center, the Packers had seven divisional titles, nine 10-win seasons, eleven playoff wins (including a Super Bowl), and a .629 winning percentage. Nobody has made a bigger impact on a team than Brett Favre and nobody has been the symbol for an entire franchise longer than Brett Favre. He is one of the greatest players ever to toss the pigskin and probably THE greatest person to step onto the gridiron. As a Packers fan, it was one of the saddest moments in my life when I heard his announcement that he was retiring. He will be greatly missed and forever loved.

Goodbye Brett Favre

Hello Aaron Rodgers???