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Integrity Question of the Week
By John | July 15, 2008
integrity
\in-ˈte-grə-tē\ noun1 : firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values 2 : an unimpaired condition 3 : the quality or state of being complete or undivided
I took a short vacation to the Twin Cities this past weekend. It was fantastic! We got to spend some time with good friends and see some city sights. On our last morning there, I glanced at the USA Today in our hotel lobby and saw Brett Favre’s face on the front page. Knowing that if God ever disappeared from Northeast Wisconsin, Brett would unanimously be voted to take his place, I read the article wondering if the rumors of his return had escalated. It wasn’t until we returned home and watched the evening news that we realized how dramatic this whole ‘Brett retired but now he wants to play and the Packers don’t want him‘ thing really is now. The first 10 minutes of the news (they only get 22 for news- 8 for commercials) were spent talking to anyone who had anything to say about Brett and his possible return. Not fires, not wars, but video of Brett throwing TD passes to high school kids in Mississippi took the feature position.
In the midst of all this media-induced drama, the fact remains: Brett is retired. His tearful retirement speech endeared him forever to his fans across the country. Of course, it’s not unheard of (Michael Jordan, Joe Montana, Mario Lemieux, etc…) for an athlete to second guess his retirement, but why is Brett trying to come back? Didn’t he mean what he said, that he was done with football? Does this call into question his integrity? After all, the Packers made all kinds of plans for life without Brett - including drafting another QB. Is it fair to his team to keep them in limbo about who will lead their team?
All these questions are swirling in the minds of Packer lovers everywhere, as evidenced by the sharp rise in the number of car accidents, the circulation of un-spellchecked office memos, and the cases of ‘I just forgot to eat or drink’ dehydration reported by local hospitals.
What do you think: In going back on his word, is Brett doing a disservice to his personal integrity, or just his athletic legacy?
Topics: Question of the Week |
July 15th, 2008 at 11:19 am
As a Viking fan I’m obviously intrigued by this question for a number of reasons.
First, how will Packer Nation respond to Brett. Secondly, can I as a Viking fan imagine Brett Favre in the Purple and Gold (though I agree with the sports media that whatever happens the Packers will almost certainly prevent this). Would rooting for Favre actually besmirch my own integrity?
Finally, on a more serious note, I’d have to say that this probably is one of those cases where all parties spread a little guilt around. Brett probably deserves some of it and while I’m not sure I’d say his character is called into question, I think this does taint his sports legacy a little. But you’ve got to admit that if you had those kind of skills and found yourself really wanting to play again, you probably would too. After all, the love of the game is probably a greater driving force than worrying about legacy.
July 15th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
Well now! As a COWBOY fan (yes,Pastor Borkenhagen we still have some work to do with you) we should point out what happened to Cowboy Emmit Smith when he quit in a blaze of glory, then changed his mind and went to Arizona. He failed there. And almost lost his star status. Brett,we hope will leave well enough alone and start a business or something.