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During an interview Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren, Favre accused the Packers of fabricating their version of events and telling only part of the truth about his waffling on retirement.
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** FILE ** In this Dec. 21, 2006 file photo, Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre waves to spectators as he leaves the field following the Packers' 9-7 victory over the Minnesota Vikings during an NFL football game in Green Bay, Wis. The Green Bay Packers' general manager and coach don't plan to grant Brett Favre's request for his release. If he does rejoin the team, they told The Associated Press, it won't be as the starting quarterback. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer, file) |
“Don’t make up a lot of stuff or give half of the truth,” Favre said. “I mean, it’s ridiculous. It really is.”
In his first interview since news of his desire to come back broke, Favre also said that the team pressured him into his premature decision to retire in early March and told him that coming back to the Packers wasn’t an option after his flirtation with a comeback at the end of March.
“The bottom line, (on) March (6), when I got in front of the podium, did I want to play? Yes. One hundred percent? No,” Favre said in a 12-minute segement of an interview that was taped Monday morning in agent James “Bus” Cook’s office and aired during Van Susteren’s nightly show, “On The Record.”
“I won’t play if I’m not 100 percent committed,” Favre added. “I could’ve easily said, ‘You know what? I’ll take the money, I’ll come back, and hopefully I’ll get committed somewhere either before training camp, during training camp or during the season. No one will know.’ But that’s not me.”
Van Susteren promised that the second half of the interview would run tonight. Toward the end of the portion that ran Monday night, Favre confessed that he is “guilty of retiring early,” and acknowledged that he may end up staying retired after all this.
“The bottom line is,” Favre said. “I may not play anywhere.”
While claiming he wasn’t mad at the team for moving on, Favre also implied that general manager Ted Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy were being disingenuous when they said the team was trying to protect the legacy of the legendary quarterback, who is the NFL’s only three-time MVP and holds virtually every significant career quarterbacking record.
“(The Packers said), ‘We’re trying to protect your legacy.’ Well, thank you, I appreciate that,” Favre said. “But apparently now, they’re trying to protect my legacy by bringing me back and having me be a backup. Boy, that is really good.”
When Van Susteren observed that Favre “liked being a Packer,” Favre replied, “I can’t envision being with anyone else, or haven’t envisioned being with anyone else.
“It was destiny. A kid from South Mississippi ... who would’ve ever thought I would go to Green Bay and have the career I had? And it’s unfortunate that it has come to this.
“I’m sure there’s a lot of fans out there thinking from what they’ve heard, that, ‘Brett is a traitor, he wants to play elsewhere.’ That’s not true. I was told that playing in Green Bay was not an option. Regardless of what you hear from up there. I’m not making it up. I was told that playing in Green Bay was not an option.
“Then, I was told, ‘We can’t envision you playing with another team’ as well. What does that tell me? That, ‘We don’t want you playing, period.“’
As for fan reaction to his indecision, Favre said, “I understand how the public is like, “You know, make up your mind already.’ But, there’s no way I can expect them to understand what I’m going through.”
The interview was arranged by Van Susteren after Favre’s wife, Deanna, emailed her on Saturday, saying that Favre wanted to tell his side of the story after Thompson spoke to several state media outlets that day.
In those interviews, Thompson said Favre would be accepted back on the roster if he petitioned NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for reinstatement from the reserve retired list but that Aaron Rodgers is now the team’s starting quarterback. League spokesman Greg Aiello wouldn’t say whether Favre had applied for reinstatement, referring questions to the Packers.
“We currently have nothing to add on this matter,” Packers PR director Jeff Blumb said in a statement emailed to reporters before Van Susteren’s show began.
Van Susteren might seem to be a curious choice to receive Favre’s first interview, but the Appleton native is an unabashed Favre fan as well as a Packers shareholder. She also avoided any difficult questions in her previous interviews with Favre — in September 2006 and again last September.
Favre said when he told McCarthy on June 20 that he was seriously considering a comeback, McCarthy told him the team had “moved on.”
“And I said, ‘Moved on?’ (And McCarthy said), ‘Yeah, we’ve moved on. I had to tell the team something, you know what I mean? You told me you were not 100 percent committed,“’ Favre recounted.
Favre briefly acknowledged that he talked to the team about a comeback in late March, but did not elaborate on his change of heart then. Favre also said that he told McCarthy, ” ‘Had I been able to wait until training camp, that would have been great. (McCarthy) said, ‘Well, why didn’t you tell me that? We would have let you do it.“’
When Fox News promoted the interview, it said Favre would address, among other things, how he won’t return to Green Bay as a backup, that he wants to be released and that he doesn’t want to be traded because then the Packers would control his “destiny.” Those statements apparently will air tonight.
