Ever since a buddy at work sent me an email stating that Mark Rosen had a scoop on Brett Favre, I have been struggling to not curse at every opportunity. Frankly, I am livid that Favre is now a Viking. To me, this is unforgivable.
I started writing this last night, which is the paragraph above. But, having had a chance to sleep on it, here are my thoughts on this. The main theme here is desperation.
1. Despite his protestations to the contrary, Favre is desperate to get back at Ted Thompson for a perceived slight. Favre believes that Ted Thompson disrespected him by not letting Favre come out of retirement and re-assume the starting job in Green Bay. Then, trading him to the Jets? I really believe that Favre remains upset about not getting a poke at the Packers last season. So, while revenge is not the only reason Favre did this, it's definitely a consideration.
2. According to Randy Shaver on KARE11, Brad Childress called Favre and asked him to come back on Monday night. This makes sense, as Brad Childress is probably on the hot seat. Childress wants to keep his job, and saw that his QBs of Sage Rosenfels and Tavaris Jackson weren't doing enough. So, Brad calls his buddy and begs him to reconsider. But, this is a big gamble on Childress' part. If this backfires at all (and I can't help but think it might), Chilly is done in Minnesota. The fans and ownership labor under the impression that this team with Favre can win the Super Bowl. Anything less than a deep playoff run is probably going to cost Childress his job, especially now. The ante has been upped.
3. Of course, the owner of the Vikings signed off on this. Zygi Wilf (known around here as Ziggy Piggy) owns a franchise that people were losing interest in fast. Prior to this signing, only two of the Vikings home games were sold out (Green Bay and Chicago, which draw considerable attendance from opposing fans). In this economy, and with thousands of seats available for the other games, Fox 9 and WCCO are likely not in a position to buy the other tickets to avoid local TV blackouts due to decreased advertising revenue.
The other thing to consider is how badly the Vikings want a new stadium. They have one of the worst stadium situations in the NFL. Their division rivals all have new or renovated stadiums, and are making money hand-over-fist (well, maybe not Detroit so much). Ziggy Piggy wants more revenue streams, and is just not going to get them in the Jiffy Pop Dome. With a moribund franchise who has never won a Super Bowl, this definitely wasn't going to happen. Signing Brett Favre is a gamble that could really pay off if the Vikings actually won a Super Bowl with him. This is sure to increase pressure on the state legislature to get a stadium deal done...Ziggy Piggy knows something has to give, because right now the state government has no interest in forking over money for a new stadium.
So, why did Brett Favre come to the Vikings? I believe a ton of desperation on all sides has a lot to do with this. And, here's hoping it blows up in their face.
Go Pack!
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4 comments:
My boyfriend is a Vikings fan, and when I mentioned the news to him last night (he's not constantly connected to social media like some of us), he was delighted. I was like, "Are you kidding me? He's FORTY. He can't throw." To which he responded "He can throw. He's Brett Favre. You sign Brett F**kin' Favre." I was like "Whatevs."
Anyway, you've written a very interesting synopsis of the situation here; I was very entertained. You listed several likely factors, but as far as reaction, I think for V-fans, though, it might just come down to "He's Brett F**kin' Favre."
Good post, Mikey. I'd agree with everything you said.
And Amanda, you are correct, too: for the Vikings fans, it's simple: he's Brett F**kin' Favre.
Yeah, and for many years Vikings fans referred to him as "F**kin' Brett Favre." Now that's what the Packer fans get to call him.
I don't wish ill will toward many people, but I wouldn't mind seeing Brett on his back many times in that purple jersey. Ugh.
i think the desire to put favre on his back will be stronger this year than all other previous yrs...
COMBINED.
and thats just in Green Bay.
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