IPBprez
Cheesehead
Posted Dec. 11, 2005
Pete Dougherty
E-mail Pete Dougherty at
[email protected]
Favre’s future hinges on Thompson’s moves
On New Year’s Day, the final day of the regular season, we’ll know whether the Green Bay Packers have one of the top couple of picks in the NFL draft.
Within a day or two thereafter, we also should know whether Mike Sherman will be back as their coach.
But the other major issue surrounding this team, whether Brett Favre will return for his 15th season as their quarterback and 16th season in the NFL, could take several weeks or more to unfold.
Assuming he hasn’t decided already —as recently as this week he insisted he hasn’t — then what happens between now and March could heavily influence his thinking. Not as much what happens on the field, but what happens off it.
Let’s first say that there’s no new information here on what he’ll do. You have to think he has an inkling, but he probably wavers, depending on the day, and he might not know which way it’s going to fall until after he gets away from the game for a while.
Even a couple weeks ago, the guess here was he’d probably be back. That was based on his comments in press conferences and discussions with sources who know him well. With the recent beating he’s taken, both physically and in the court of public opinion, that feeling’s not quite as strong.
After talking with several sources, here’s the best guess at what will matter to him most:
• First, whether he’s emotionally up to another season, which includes enduring the rigorous offseason core workouts he did last spring and summer to get ready to play.
• Second, whether he thinks the Packers can contend for the Super Bowl.
Favre still appears to enjoy football. At almost every press conference during the second half of this terrible season, he’s professed his love of playing and competing and said he treasures his job. He’s regularly mentioned how brief a player’s career is, and that he has to enjoy it while he’s capable, which suggests he’s in no hurry to retire for retirement’s sake.
Favre, 36, also has betrayed no concern that his skills have diminished too much, and he regularly proclaims his offseason work with a personal trainer a success because he’s more mobile than the last couple seasons. He feels like he’s playing good football.
On the other hand, Favre has been beaten up more this year than any season in his career. Sources say he’s never been as frustrated because he’s almost set up to fail as quarterback of a punchless team missing Ahman Green, Javon Walker and other key offensive players.
If the punishment and blame pile on the final four weeks, there’s always the chance his desire to bounce back will flame out. All his life, football was the one place he could gain satisfaction when other things went wrong. Now, it’s his biggest problem.
He’ll weigh that feeling against finishing his career on a horrible note. Who voluntarily ends a Hall of Fame career on a two- or three-win season? All things considered, it’s hard to imagine next season not being better if he comes back.
So, assuming Favre has the fire, the issue will come down to the Packers’ chances of contending in 2006. That’s the trickier, even more difficult question to answer, and there are no guarantees.
A telltale sign is whether General Manager Ted Thompson has a sitdown with him after the season. Favre never has done that with a general manager, except when coach Mike Sherman also held the GM role and they had their yearly player-coach exit interview.
Maybe Favre will act out of character and ask Thompson for a meeting. Or maybe Thompson will seek out Favre. Either way, such a talk probably would determine Favre’s 2006, depending on Thompson’s offseason plans.
The GM will have some ammunition this offseason, including probably a top-five pick in the draft, and anywhere from $10 million to $15 million in salary-cap room — that’s approximately $22 million to $25 million in total cap room, minus salary for rookies, tenders to veterans of less than four years and any contract extensions finished before the start of free agency.
Just because Thompson has that much money won’t make it wise to spend it, because a buying spree could create cap problems down the road. But it gives him flexibility for a few significant moves.
Also, for what it’s worth, there aren’t any signs Thompson is trying to gently push Favre out the door. I’ve asked the GM about Favre three times in the past 10½ months, and each time, he’s said, “He’s just too good a player to think about retiring now.â€
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Pete Dougherty
E-mail Pete Dougherty at
[email protected]
Favre’s future hinges on Thompson’s moves
On New Year’s Day, the final day of the regular season, we’ll know whether the Green Bay Packers have one of the top couple of picks in the NFL draft.
Within a day or two thereafter, we also should know whether Mike Sherman will be back as their coach.
But the other major issue surrounding this team, whether Brett Favre will return for his 15th season as their quarterback and 16th season in the NFL, could take several weeks or more to unfold.
Assuming he hasn’t decided already —as recently as this week he insisted he hasn’t — then what happens between now and March could heavily influence his thinking. Not as much what happens on the field, but what happens off it.
Let’s first say that there’s no new information here on what he’ll do. You have to think he has an inkling, but he probably wavers, depending on the day, and he might not know which way it’s going to fall until after he gets away from the game for a while.
Even a couple weeks ago, the guess here was he’d probably be back. That was based on his comments in press conferences and discussions with sources who know him well. With the recent beating he’s taken, both physically and in the court of public opinion, that feeling’s not quite as strong.
After talking with several sources, here’s the best guess at what will matter to him most:
• First, whether he’s emotionally up to another season, which includes enduring the rigorous offseason core workouts he did last spring and summer to get ready to play.
• Second, whether he thinks the Packers can contend for the Super Bowl.
Favre still appears to enjoy football. At almost every press conference during the second half of this terrible season, he’s professed his love of playing and competing and said he treasures his job. He’s regularly mentioned how brief a player’s career is, and that he has to enjoy it while he’s capable, which suggests he’s in no hurry to retire for retirement’s sake.
Favre, 36, also has betrayed no concern that his skills have diminished too much, and he regularly proclaims his offseason work with a personal trainer a success because he’s more mobile than the last couple seasons. He feels like he’s playing good football.
On the other hand, Favre has been beaten up more this year than any season in his career. Sources say he’s never been as frustrated because he’s almost set up to fail as quarterback of a punchless team missing Ahman Green, Javon Walker and other key offensive players.
If the punishment and blame pile on the final four weeks, there’s always the chance his desire to bounce back will flame out. All his life, football was the one place he could gain satisfaction when other things went wrong. Now, it’s his biggest problem.
He’ll weigh that feeling against finishing his career on a horrible note. Who voluntarily ends a Hall of Fame career on a two- or three-win season? All things considered, it’s hard to imagine next season not being better if he comes back.
So, assuming Favre has the fire, the issue will come down to the Packers’ chances of contending in 2006. That’s the trickier, even more difficult question to answer, and there are no guarantees.
A telltale sign is whether General Manager Ted Thompson has a sitdown with him after the season. Favre never has done that with a general manager, except when coach Mike Sherman also held the GM role and they had their yearly player-coach exit interview.
Maybe Favre will act out of character and ask Thompson for a meeting. Or maybe Thompson will seek out Favre. Either way, such a talk probably would determine Favre’s 2006, depending on Thompson’s offseason plans.
The GM will have some ammunition this offseason, including probably a top-five pick in the draft, and anywhere from $10 million to $15 million in salary-cap room — that’s approximately $22 million to $25 million in total cap room, minus salary for rookies, tenders to veterans of less than four years and any contract extensions finished before the start of free agency.
Just because Thompson has that much money won’t make it wise to spend it, because a buying spree could create cap problems down the road. But it gives him flexibility for a few significant moves.
Also, for what it’s worth, there aren’t any signs Thompson is trying to gently push Favre out the door. I’ve asked the GM about Favre three times in the past 10½ months, and each time, he’s said, “He’s just too good a player to think about retiring now.â€
(of course that's not guaranteed because those teams might improve as well).
