Brett Favre was always that carefree gunslinger, throwing footballs into tight spots and putting himself into a few as well.
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| Brett Favre has grown up a lot since he donned an Atlanta Falcons jersey. (US Presswire) |
He also had flaws, which we all do. He had a substance-abuse problem early in his career. He was addicted to pain medication. He loved the nightlife as a young player, and admittedly was not the family man he should have been at times.
Maybe that's why so many loved Favre so much; fans saw themselves in him.
With his career seemingly over, his decision to retire coming out Tuesday, Favre leaves the game as one of the greatest passers of all time.
More important, he leaves as a better man.
Favre grew up, wised up. He stopped going out. He focused on his family. The troubles of his early years were left behind.
The young Favre was brash and arrogant and got caught up in the trappings of being an NFL star. The Favre of recent years dealt with tragedy after tragedy as a mature man, making him a better person.
He smiled more. He joked more. He got closer to his teammates.
When Packers coach Mike McCarthy took over in 2006, he didn't exactly have a warm relationship with Favre. That changed and the two became close. They teased each other a lot. McCarthy fined Favre for being late to a practice when Favre didn't pay close enough attention to the time, which Favre respected.
Favre always wanted the appearance that he was one of the guys, and the fine showed that he was. He was distant at times with teammates in his career, keeping to a select circle, but in recent years that changed, too. The outer layer of protection wasn't as hard to crack.
Last season, after the Packers beat the Kansas City Chiefs on the road, Favre visited with friends and family in the hallway of Arrowhead Stadium. His brother and young nephew were there. Favre's face lit up as he talked about the kid's ability to throw the football. He made the kid show his motion to McCarthy. The coach said he had better footwork than his uncle.
"He's going to break all my high school passing records," Favre said.
He paused.
"Of course, my team ran it too much," he said. He broke out in laughter.
You could tell that this was a man content with where he was in life. The Packers success of last season rejuvenated Favre.
After a few years where some questioned whether he could get it done anymore, Favre became a star again. In 2005, he threw 20 touchdown passes and 29 interceptions. That arm that made him so daring in the past, able to squeeze balls into windows few could, now was a problem.
He couldn't strong-arm passes into the tight spots like he once did. He followed that up with an 18-touchdown, 18-interception season in 2006. Both years he had passer ratings in the 70s. Was he done? He pondered retirement, but came back last season to lead the Packers to within a game of the Super Bowl. He threw 28 touchdowns and 15 interceptions and his passer rating was 95.7.
The Giants upset the Packers in the NFC Championship Game at Lambeau Field, denying Favre a chance at wining his third Super Bowl. His last pass that day, his last pass ever, was a poorly thrown ball that was picked off by Giants corner Corey Webster in overtime. The pick set up the Giants' game-winning field goal.
Because of the way that game ended, many speculated Favre would be back. But when I spoke to McCarthy at the Super Bowl, the coach wasn't so sure. Favre was conflicted about his family, saying that football was taking him away from them too much.
Would young Favre have even contemplated that for a minute? How could he when his love of the nightlife took him away even more?
Favre leaves the game holding the records for passing yards, completions and touchdowns. He's also the all-time leader in interceptions, a sign of just how daring a quarterback he was.
To be great, you have to take chances. Chances lead to mistakes. But that was Favre.
At times, I thought Favre got a pass from the media. His problems with abusing pain medication seem like a lifetime ago. Wasn't that performance enhancing? Yet it is rarely mentioned, even with the focus in all sports on those things.
Instead, the focus when it comes to Favre is on his records and his streak of never missing a start. Of his dealing with the death of his father, the death of his brother-in-law and the heartache of watching his wife's fight with breast cancer, which she is winning.
Maybe seeing him change is why Favre is so revered. The fork in the road was there and he took the right one.
The boy became a man -- a good one.
Where the man ranks in history as an NFL quarterback is up for debate. I don't think he's in the top five, but he's in the top 10.
I'll go with Dan Marino, Joe Montana, John Elway, Johnny Unitas, Otto Graham, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady ahead of him. Then it might be Favre.
As much as any of them, he was a joy to watch. You never knew what was coming next. It could be an underhand pass for a completion. It could be a laser for 50 yards that made your jaw drop. It could be a terribly forced pass that made his coaches wince.
Maybe it was the unpredictability that drew us to Favre. You couldn't turn away because you just might miss something truly special.
As he walks away from the game after 17 years, that long list of passing records going with him, Favre should do so with his head held high.
Not only did he show greatness on the field but he became pretty damn good off it, which is the most important game of them all.