‘I just don’t see that happening:’ Brett Favre says he doesn’t think Aaron Rodgers, Packers will bury hatchet
GREEN BAY — If there’s one person who can relate to the ongoing dispute between the Green Bay Packers and Aaron Rodgers, it’s Brett Favre.
The Hall of Fame quarterback found himself in a similar dispute with the team in 2008, after he had announced his retirement following the 2007 season, only to change his mind. By then, the team had already decided it was moving on to hand the reins over to Rodgers.
“It’s similar but different,” Favre said during a radio interview with the “Wilde & Tausch” show, noting that the Packers, then run by the late Ted Thompson, were willing to trade him, but the current front office does not want to trade Rodgers.
However, Favre says he understands the frustration Rodgers may be feeling with the Packers right now, saying he had similar feelings in 2008, and he doesn’t see things getting better between the two sides anytime soon.
“Had me and (former head coach Mike) McCarthy not had the discussions after I had retired the way we did, when I told him I was thinking about coming back, he did not want to hear that,” Favre said about his 2008 situation. “And the hostility I heard from him sort of sparked me to, ‘Well, okay, I’ll show you then.'”
Favre says Rodgers may be having similar feelings of resentment after the team drafted his presumptive replacement, Jordan Love, in the first round of last year’s NFL Draft. When the Packers drafted Rodgers, Favre said the team likewise did not consult him, and while he grew to understand the move, “whether I liked it or not was a different story.”
While Rodgers is 37 years old and will be 38 in December — the same age Favre was during his final season in Green Bay — Favre says he still thinks Rodgers could play five more years “at least.” However, reports in the last week have indicated Rodgers is considering retirement rather than playing again for the Packers.
Unfortunately for Packers fans, Favre doesn’t see the situation being resolved anytime soon.
“Will he just swallow his pride and come in? Maybe. But I just don’t see that happening,” Favre said on the radio show. “Honestly I don’t see him coming back and saying, ‘Alright, let’s bury the hatchet.’ My gut is telling me he’d rather sit out than play.”
Favre did confirm a rumor that he texted Rodgers on the first night of the NFL Draft, asking him if he’d be seeing Rodgers play for his hometown New Orleans Saints, who saw quarterback Drew Brees retire after last season.
“Hey buddy, I don’t believe that’s going to happen. Thanks for checking on me. I’ll touch base with you after this is all over,” Rodgers reportedly replied.
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