Brett Come Back

For just one more year.

 

Yes, this is a cheesy post about Brett Favre. More like an open letter, not that he will ever read it.

 

Due to my religious conversion, I haven’t watched football on Sundays in 14 years, but living in Wisconsin, I heard all about every Packer game every Monday morning and throughout the week. I have either seen or listened to every non-Sunday game Brett Favre has played in during that time (except for those games that have been aired on the NFL Network – what a crock that channel is BTW. Just another reason to dislike Jerry Jones and Co.) Since the advent of the internet and team websites, I have wasted entirely too much time following Brett around cyberspace after and before every game. Frankly, my life would be easier and freer if Brett finally retired, both for the amount of time I waste and the yearly angst over whether his brilliant cannon will eventually misfire once again in the playoffs.

 

All this time, I, like many other Favre fans have watched throughout the year just hoping to see Brett and his team make one more Superbowl (hey, I wouldn’t watch it on Sunday, but I would sure tape it and get up early to see it before anyone could tell me what happened). Every year we have been disappointed. Almost every year we come away with the feeling that a Superbowl was “this” close, but it hasn’t been since 1996. (I don’t count the 1997 Superbowl because, even though the Pack was there, they couldn’t close the deal). The sad thing is that I think the Vikings defense would have shut Manning down this year, and for the offense to put up 28 points in spite of all their mistakes, well…once again, it was “this” close. I’m actually glad I wasn’t watching this last Sunday. I was sick enough just hearing about it Monday morning.

 

Regardless of what Brett says, if he goes out now he will not be going out “on top.” He will be going out having been once again almost to the top, and he knows it.

 

But here’s the thing: I truly believe that Brett and the Vikings can pull it off next near. As deflating as the end of this season was, this Vikings team is still primed for at least one more run, and they have a committed owner who is willing to add whatever pieces are necessary to round out this championship team. An offense that essentially endured training camp during the beginning of the regular season will be even scarier with a year of work behind them. Who knows, maybe Zygi will bring Aaron Kampman over to start opposite Jared Allen, pick up a free agent or two in the secondary, AP might learn how to hang on to the football, and this Viking team will be unstoppable with Brett Favre at the helm.

 

Even if they stand pat, on any other day but last Sunday, the Vikings have the firepower to beat any team in the NFL. The Saints go into this Superbowl knowing that they didn’t beat the Vikings. The Vikings (and a few lousy refs) beat the Vikings. The Saints will go on to lose to the Colts in a blowout in a couple of weeks, but if Favre comes back next year, it will be the Vikings who march through to the Superbowl and win it all.

 

Brett, you have one more year left on your contract with the Vikings. Please come back. For one more run. We know you can do it. We know you can. Besides, wouldn’t it be great to stick to ol’ Ted, just one more time? (Well, actually twice, and maybe once again in the playoffs, but who’s counting?) And just once I would love to have all the Favre haters and naysayers actually have to shut up instead of just staying quiet long enough to have something else to talk about. Just once I’d like to have Homer here at ESPN in Wisconsin have to eat his hate served cold on a Monday morning after a Superbowl – but beyond all of that, we just want to see you play, one more time. Come on back Brett, because we all don’t just want to know you can do it, we want to see you do it, and deep down inside, you know you want to see it too. Come on back Brett, because we all know that you have one more season, one more Superbowl in you. Brett, come back, for just one more year.

 

A Fan