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Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers have parted ways again after the long drawn out saga that has helped make the summer at least a little more interesting for diehard football fans.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre went into a meeting Tuesday morning acknowledging that he was at a "stalemate" with the team and believed the "best thing for this team is for us to part ways" according to a report filed by ESPN.com.
Alas, Favre is not officially retiring just yet. He'll be reporting back to his family and agent to discuss trade possibilities.
"We're at a stalemate," Favre said. "Mike and I both agreed last night that me being out there is a distraction and will continue to be a distraction. We all know the reason I'm here is because the commissioner [Roger Goodell] reinstated me so we have a lot of things to figure out. It's simple and complicated, both at the same time."
Favre also clarified reports that the Packers were no longer willing to allow open competition with Aaron Rodgers for the starting job.
"Mike told me, hey, we're a better team with you on it but wanted to know if I have a problem with an open competition," Favre said. "I don't have a problem with competing -- you know that, but Aaron should be the starter right now because he's been out here all this time. This is more than about an open competition and I can do that, absolutely, but this is going to be mass confusion and that's not good for this team.
"I'll practice my butt off, if it comes to that, and I think we all know what the end result will be, but this probably isn't going to work. And I truly understand that if I was in Mike's shoes, I'd see it basically the same way he sees it, I'm sure. And I think if he was in my shoes, he'd see it my way. I think we both agree on that.
"They want to know if I'm committed but I want to know if they're 100 percent committed. The problem is that there's been a lot of damage done and I can't forget it. Stuff has been said, stories planted, that just aren't true. Can I get over all that? I doubt it."
The Packers do not want Favre talking to teams within the NFC North. On Tuesday, a source told ESPN that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were now interested.
Green Bay, which opened with single digit odds to win the 2009 Super Bowl, has been adversely affected by the Favre soap opera in recent weeks. Our friends at BetOnline.com now listed the Packers with odds of 25/1 to win the 2009 Super Bowl (also seen as +2500).
