Tuesday, August 18, 2009

A shorter bread line

I awoke this morning to sad news: Another potential Bread Line Blogger has found work. Sure, it was a long shot, but why wouldn't Brett Favre want to write a few posts about his fourth retirement in three years? I'm sure Favre could comment about how tough it is to spend time with the family and not earn a million-dollar paycheck. But what I see in Favre is that older employee in the office who can't leave. For whatever reason, Farve just can't give it up - and I think it's pathetic.

In fact, I am more annoyed about the Minnesota Vikings signing Favre than I was about the Philly Eagles picking up another former breadliner - or should I say chain ganger? - better known as Mike Vick. What Vick did with Bad Newz Kennels was heinous, but he has paid a hefty price. Two years in prison and bankruptcy will humble a man, even superstar athletes. But in America, you have the right to make a living, so I applaud NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for not suspending Vick for the entire season. Now, that doesn't mean I think Vick deserved a contract offer, but he certainly has the right to pursue one. His actions off the football field will show if he truly is sorry about what he did with his dog-fighting sideshow.

As for Favre, his actions show a lazy man who manipulates teams and the system to skip out on training camp. While it is not as overt, this is no different than a cocky wide receiver holding out of training camp until he gets that bigger contract. Imagine if Ben Roethlisberger did that in Pittsburgh. But because everyone loves Brett Favre, most people will consider this a victory for the league. Not me. Although I love how he plays the game, I'm sick of Brett Favre's tired act. If you want to play, Brett, then don't announce that you are retired and confirm that decision a few days before training camp only to return three weeks before the start of the season.

Of course, this decision has consequences. With news of the signing, I would like to formally welcome soon-to-be former Vikings quarterback John David Booty to the bread line. And while he will be losing his jersey number and eventually his job, he's more than welcome to write for this blog. Maybe we'll call it the Booty Blog.

10 comments:

  1. You might want to google "booty blog" first to see what you're up against... just sayin'

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  2. I'm willing to bet money that URL is already taken... many times over.

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  3. Many different iterations... yet... they all feature the same thing

    Hmmmmm? :-)

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  4. Forget the innuendos, what do you think about Brett Faaaavree coming back?

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  5. I'm not completely gay for it... but I don't mind, either... I really like Brett Favre... not "John Madden" like him... but it would take a lot more than him dicking around various teams' management staff to make him a villain in my mind.

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  6. I agree he isn't a villain, but this whole situation wreaks, in my opinion. I'm not sure whether Farve can't make up his mind or he is a chronic liar. But he definitely is or the other, maybe even both. I think this just shows that Green Bay made the right decision last year when they went with Aaron Rodgers and ended the Brett Farve soap opera.

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  7. He obviously doesn't care about the team element. I am over Favre, his myriad retirements and people singing his praises. Part of being a superstar is knowing when to hang it up.

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  8. His return was a sad day for professional sports teams. It is sad on two fronts: Favre (easy to transpose two letters, huh?) for how he has jerked around so many people, and second, those he has jerked around. The Vikings look like losers in this deal, regardless of who well he plays. This is clearly the tail wagging the dog, so to speak. The height of disrespect was when Childress took Booty's #4 jersey and gave it to Favre.

    I'll leave it to others to chastise Favre for his "all about me" attitude. But, what does this say about the Vikings as an organization? They traded last Winter for Rosefelds (?), to have a starter QB. They move into preseason with a plan, but holding out hope that Favre would reconsider. They are a classless organization, a ship without a rudder, and look worse than the Pirates management team for their disarray status.

    I don't like to wish ill-will on anybody. But, the best thing that could happen is that Favre flames out quickly. It would take the fuel out of this torch in short order. As a casual sports observer, his stint with the Jets was less than noteworthy, injuries not withstanding. He was known for his interceptions at inopportune times. Although, he was also known for his ability to bring life to a team at desperate times. For the sake of the sport (that is ever a stretch), the Vikings should collapse quickly, and decisively. They have allowed themselves to be used, and don't deserve respect, or any success as an organization.

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  9. ...regardless of who well he plays.

    ...regardless of how well he plays.

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  10. Couldn't have said it better myself, Roger. What I think is rubbish is that Green Bay controlled his rights last summer, so the team traded him to the Jets. There was a clause that the Packers would get three 1st round picks if Farve was ever traded to the Vikings because they didn't want him in the same division. Knowing this, Favre pretends to retire again at the end of the season, so the Jets release him in order to free up roster/cap space. Then once training camp is over, Favre signs with the very team that the Packers didn't want him to go to. This stinks, and I think it shows the act of a desperate man and team.

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