Favre can't win when it comes to office politics
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In February and early March, when Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy pressured Favre for a retirement decision by pretending the Packers couldn't move forward without knowing Favre's 2008 status a month before the draft, four months before training camp and five months before kickoff, that's when Brett should've played the Favre-being-Favre card.
"I'm Brett Favre. I've played quarterback in Green Bay for 16 years. I don't miss games. I'll announce my 2008 plans when I'm good and ready. I'll be in Mississippi hunting and fishing. Don't call me. I'll call you."
Rather than a tearful, forced goodbye in March, long before the emotions of a heartbreaking loss to the Giants had subsided, Favre should've told Packers management that he'd earned the right to be incredibly selfish and do what's right for Brett.
But coaches, with ample assistance from the media, specialize in brainwashing athletes that they should always do what's best for the team while the organization never considers what's best for the athlete.
So Brett, in a moment of weakness, bought the b.s. that the Packers couldn't win in September unless they knew what Brett was going to do in March. Yeah, Mike McCarthy's train left last winter and it can't slow down this summer to pick up Brett Favre, a three-time league MVP, the MVP runner-up last season.
But Jon Gruden, Lovie Smith, Brad Childress and Eric Mangini were all willing to back up their trains to take on Brett Favre's baggage. The Jets plan on letting Favre power their train deep into the playoffs this season.
Someone is lying, and it's not Brett Favre, a man so media-friendly and naively transparent that he poured his heart out to Greta Van Susteren, Chris Mortensen, Peter King, Ed Werder, Wendi Nix and Oprah Winfrey.
I'm joking about Oprah. But there's still time for him to sort this whole mess out on The Couch.
If it happens, I hope I'm invited. I get the feeling Brett still hasn't put it together how Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy ran him out of the franchise and state he owned for nearly two decades.
Thompson and McCarthy are superior at office politics. Following a 13-3 regular season and a run to the NFC Championship, they both quickly inked five-year contract extensions and decided it was the perfect time to play hardball with an iconic quarterback who spent too much time campaigning for Randy Moss rather than pointing the spotlight toward Thompson's and McCarthy's brilliance.
You've seen this on your job. It goes on in every workplace.
New bosses come in and they look for their opportunity to diminish anything that happened before they arrived and champion their hires.
Ted Thompson drafted Aaron Rodgers in 2005, and a year later while ignoring Favre's calls for Steve Mariucci, he hired McCarthy to lead the Packers.
Thompson desperately wants Rodgers to be the quarterback of the Green Bay Packers.
Thompson and McCarthy don't get credit for Brett Favre's success. And as long as Favre was in Green Bay, Thompson and McCarthy could never be viewed the way Bill Belichick and Scott Pioli or Bill Walsh and Eddie Debartolo are.
Brett Favre is going down in history by himself. Mike Holmgren and Ron Wolf will get mentions at Favre's Hall of Fame induction. Thompson and McCarthy want to write their own history, and they want to do it now while the Packers have on paper "the best young roster in the league."
So Aaron Rodgers can do no wrong in their eyes. His fragile body, weak resume and shoddy performance in a recent scrimmage can all be explained away. He's Thompson's first hire, the new employee with the freedom to do whatever the hell he wants.
I know you've seen this on your job.
Favre was completely outflanked politically inside Packers headquarters. Thompson has been laying the ground work for Favre's ouster for three years. Favre spends the offseason and every free moment bunkered in Mississippi away from the "office."
Thompson, McCarthy and team president Mark Murphy see each other and talk constantly in Green Bay. They can form a circle of jerks at anytime and tell each other how great they are. They've talked so much they really believe they're better off without Brett Favre, and they think Rodgers, with the right help, can do what Favre did a season ago.
Good luck with it. I hope it blows up in their faces.
Favre was far from perfect. But he gave everything he could to the organization for 16 straight years. He lost a battle of office politics because he tried to play the game nicely. He should've called Manny Ramirez for some advice. Manny knows how to be Manny, and being Manny got him exactly what he wanted.
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