Finally Farewell: Favre Finishes Career

Brett Favre was not the Alpha Quarterback. Troy Aikman, Terry Bradshaw, John Elway, and Joe Montana won multiple Super Bowls. Favre won one. Steve Young was higher rated. Favre was interception prone. Yet, Favre was beloved. He was not glamorous or gorgeous. He was simply relatable. Favre was human, ordinary, and unspectacular. For this, fans worshiped him.

On March 4, Favre finally retired. “I'm not up to the challenge anymore,” he said. “I can play, but I'm not up to the challenge. You can't just show up and play for three hours on Sunday. If you could, there'd be a lot more people doing it and they'd be doing it for a lot longer. I have way too much pride. I expect a lot out of myself. And if I cannot do those things 100 percent, then I can't play.”

“I've given everything I possibly could give to this organization, the game of football, and I don't think I've got anything left to give,” he continued. “And that's it. I know I can play. But I don't think I want to.”

During his career, Favre started 253 contests. He completed 5,377 of 8,758 passes (61%). He amassed 61,655 yards with 442 touchdowns and 288 interceptions. Favre garnered three NFL Most Valuable Player Awards. He won Super Bowl XXXI. He accrued ten playoff appearances. Favre’s records include career completions, attempts, yards, touchdowns, and interceptions.

For several seasons, Favre has openly considered retirement. Evidently, he respects his decision. “I'm going out on top,” he said. “Believe me, I could care less what other people think. It's what I think, and I'm going out on top.”

“I hope that with every penny they've spent on me, they know it was money well spent,” Favre said. “It wasn't about the money or fame or records. I hear people talk about your accomplishments and things. It was never my accomplishments, it was our accomplishments.”

Simply stated, Favre was American. He was chaotic, disorganized, haphazard, and scattered. He was not concise, elegant, or refined. Favre’s final play epitomizes his legacy. He could have acted prudently. He could have prolonged his season. Instead, Favre forced an interception.