Miscellaneous

The Favre Double Standard

I am sick of Brett Favre.  As a former Packers fan, he used to be one of my favorite football players.  Now I can’t stand the guy.  I will play; I won’t play; I will play.  Urrgh.

Today I want to talk about Favre’s “love of the game.”  To entice Favre to return to football, the Vikings increased Favre’s salary from $13 million to $16.5 million plus $3.5 million in incentives.  Favre’s agent Bus Cook stated the following: “If they want to reward him, nobody’s going to walk away from that. But it’s not a factor in his decision.”

I have no idea whether the extra money played a factor in Brett Favre’s return.  However, offering an extra $3.5-$7 million would certainly make most people think twice about retiring.  The media coverage has bought into the whole ‘it’s not about the money’ position hook, line and sinker.  When other athletes ask for more money and claim that it’s about respect, most people role their eyes.  Favre holds an almost untouchable status and no journalist would ever accuse him of being greedy whether he is or not.

This double standard extends to the field of play as well.  When Chad Ochocinco does a dance after scoring a touchdown, he is often criticized for showboating.  However, if Favre jumps around the field and tackles his wide receivers after a touchdown, this is just evidence of how much he loves the game.

Is this a racial issue (black guys are greedy and white guys are not, black guys showboat and white guys celebrate) or is Favre just a unique individual who gets special treatment?  I don’t know.  I am however, excited for Aaron Rodgers and the Packers to beat the Vikings this year.

Healthcare blogging returns tomorrow.

2 Comments

  1. You are so right. I moved to Wisconsin a few years before he “retired”, and I was sick of hearing about him by the time he actually left Green Bay. Favre obviously needs more attention than his efforts on the field provide. I don’t live in WI anymore, but he’s still all over the news. I don’t care. Go away. I wish he would retire. And better yet, if his yearly retirement news has to be reported, it should be accompanied by sighs and eye-rolls.

  2. This seems a bit like sour grapes. He was excited after touchdowns BEFORE he left the Packers and I bet you didn’t have a problem with it. I am not a Vikings fan, but I truly enjoy watching him play. He genuinely has a smile on his face on the field (you can’t say that about all QBs) and he is still playing the game (WELL) after age 40. That’s a great thing to watch. I think the media plays up the whole “will I play?” stuff and the so-called tension between him and Childress. But the biggest Brett-haters are always the folks that loved him in GB.

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