Rumors: Favre to Panthers, Vikings, even Bears!!!

Rumors are flying around everywhere right now. Some of the latest chatter has Favre landing with the Panthers (Stacey P alludes to this in her comment on the last packergeek post – check out Profootballtalk.com here for more on that). Also, check here from the St. Paul Pioneer Press for an argument for the Vikings to go after him. I wish I could summarily dismiss all of these rumors and provide you some more fact-based information about what may happen, but I can’t. I have no new information.

My gut reaction to the Panthers rumor is that it is Profootballtalk.com just spreading falsehoods, as they are wont to do. I think I may start saying things like “my sources” or “our people” when starting a rumor  – “our people have indicated that Favre to play in Packergeeks golf outing benefiting the Human Fund”.  Favre to Carolina just doesn’t make much sense. I say this mostly because they don’t appear to be set up to be very good this year. Sure, they have a decent coach, some decent players and are the perennial sexy pick to go to the playoffs, but this one doesn’t make sense.

The Vikings rumor is more of a wish from a columnist at the St. Paul Pioneer Press. He makes a few solid points in his article, especially that Favre may actually be lured by being able to play inside at a dome instead of the frigid Green Bay, real football, weather. (His cold weather performances last year, Seattle game excepted, were not stellar). And the author notes that Sharper made the switch (as did Longwell, which was more surprising to me at the time), so there is precedent for big-time Packers to Benedict Arnold, if you will. But I don’t really think this will happen either. I’m 99% sure the Packers would add the stipulation in any release or trade clause that would disallow Favre from signing with another team in the division (though I suppose it’s possible TT wouldn’t even care about this considering he thinks Favre sucks).

(Not sure where I heard the Bears rumor, but I did – that would be impossible unless Favre is really really really pissed at the Packers and TT for the way they’ve handled him. Really pissed).

As I consider all of this, one question continues to resurface, over and over (that’s redundant): fine, if the Packers release or trade him, where would he go? The teams that need better QBs all suck and I don’t think Favre would have an interest in any of them (Buffalo, Miami, NYJ, Balt, KC, Atlanta, San Francisco). However, if he truly does come back (which I doubt) and the Packers get rid of him, there are a few teams I think might want him: Tampa Bay (Jeff Garcia’s style of game is just too ugly – and Favre may have an interest), Denver (Cutler has been mediocre, Shanahan is smart and knows Cutler may benefit from Favre’s example), Houston (close to home, rising team, unlikely though), Washington (Snyder would love this sort of a PR move, and it would make the Redskins suddenly more legit), Seattle (Holmgren’s last year, Hasselback has been mediocre lately) and Arizona (maybe Whisenhunt ratchets up the QB controversy by bringing in Favre – recognizing that Favre throwing to Fitzgerald and Boldin could be frightening). As you can see, I am really stretching greatly to come up with teams and arguments for each team – and each argument is poorly constructed and poorly thought out.  Take this to mean that I’m just having a really hard time imagining Favre elsewhere.

So if I had to guess at an outcome for all of this, I’d say Favre will quietly recede into the background and decide to stay retired.