@realjohnboy,
No Tears This Time, Favre Says So Long
This time, when Brett Favre decided to ride off on his lawnmower in Mississippi and spend his days in retirement targeting deer instead of receivers, it felt final.
Even the most skeptical, even friends and teammates who lived through years of rumors and indecision, even those who hold a sliver of reasonable doubt, still believe that Favre’s N.F.L. career is finished after 18 seasons.
“No question,” said Don Majkowski, a teammate of Favre’s in Green Bay. “He’s done.”
But never say never, friends make sure to add, knowing that Favre has tossed around the R-word frequently the last three seasons. They know he carved his Hall of Fame career from unconventional decisions made in haste. And they watched as he cried through the news conference announcing his retirement last spring.
The difference between that announcement and the one he made Wednesday is that those close to Favre actually believed him when he said: “It has been a wonderful career. It’s time to leave.”
Favre, who battled through injury during the season, understands the skepticism as well as anyone, and he joked about it during a conference call Wednesday night.
As far back as 2006, Majkowski believed Favre would soon retire. Majkowski worked as a television analyst for Packers games, and whenever he approached Favre on the field and asked how he was hanging in there, the answer was “barely.”
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