This is my last season: Favre
The Green Bay Packers aren't pressuring Brett Favre to make a retirement decision by Saturday's due date for a $3 million roster bonus. And even if they were, the quarterback doesn't think he owes the team a decision this weekend anyway.
In his most recent comments about his murky football future, Favre made one thing clear: If he does return, he told a newspaper in his native Mississippi there is "no doubt" it will be his last season.
Saturday's bonus due date recently has been interpreted as a deadline from the team's management for Favre to make a decision. But Packers general manager Ted Thompson said the date wasn't a firm deadline, and ESPN.com reported Friday night that the team had pushed it back to an undisclosed date — the third time this offseason Favre's bonus date has been delayed.
"If I don't tell them by Saturday, what will they do, cut me?" Favre told the Sun Herald in Gulfport, Miss.
Favre's retirement saga has turned into pro football's version of Groundhog Day, as fans and the media try to predict the future based upon brief public glimpses of the iconic QB during the winter.
Thompson said the bonus date should not be considered a deadline.
"No, it never has been," Thompson told The Associated Press on Friday. "It's just another date in the spring."
Thompson, who has remained in contact with Favre during the offseason, said he hasn't heard anything that would indicate a decision is imminent.
"We've talked to Brett and (wife) Deanna, and I've said all along that they'll decide when they decide," Thompson said.
Favre said he wants to play again but will return only if the Packers can assemble a winning team.
"Last season, expectations were high and it was a bad situation," Favre said of the team's 4-12 season, his only losing one in Green Bay. "If we can't compete at a high level, I can walk away and my legacy will speak for itself."
Thompson said Favre's unclear future isn't having a negative effect on the team's preparations for next season. But the sooner Favre decides, the better.
"It's OK now," Thompson said. "I think everybody would like to know. I think Brett would like to know."
