Favre Will Retire: Reports

(NEWSER) - With Brett Favre mulling yet another unretirement, Will Leitch of New York magazine looks back on the worst unretirements in sports history. They range from cringe-worthy to incomparably cringe-worthy:

• Ricky Williams: How many drug tests can one man fail?
• Lance Armstrong: "It’s difficult to come up with a better final chapter than winning your seventh Tour after overcoming cancer and thoroughly infuriating the French by evading all their attempts to bust you as a drug cheat."

(NEWSER) - Brett Favre has quietly instructed his agent to tell the Jets that he plans to retire, ESPN reports. After last year's tearful train wreck, Favre is skipping the farewell press conference, but he did send an email saying he has no regrets. “My time with the Jets was short,” he said, “but I’m honored to be given that chance.” More»

$20M 'payoff' would hurt legacy more than a weak season

(NEWSER) - As football fans eagerly await a decision about Brett Favre’s future in football, critics are lambasting the Green Bay Packers' reaction to the quarterback's plans to return. The measures the team is taking to obstruct Favre’s comeback are tarnishing the NFL’s good name, writes William Rhoden in the New York Times. Rhoden is particularly critical of a reported $20 million offered to Favre to remain retired. More»

Loyal fans divided on whether to support their team or their old QB

(NEWSER) - In Green Bay, sides are being chosen, rival camps established. While some fans circulate petitions calling for the team to re-embrace the newly un-retired Brett Favre, 38, as starting quarterback, others wish he would step aside. The only consensus in town seems to be that people are tired of the drama and uncertainty, writes USA Today. More»

(NEWSER) - The Packers are desperate to keep Brett Favre retired and they’re willing to pay handsomely for the privilege, ESPN reports. Packers president Mark Murphy met with the quarterback yesterday and reportedly offered him roughly $20 million over several years to stay retired. Murphy would say only that he’d had a “nice visit,” and discussed “Brett’s long-term relationship with the Packers.” More»