Bogus Gold

So it seems the Brett "Hamlet of Hattiesburg" Favre has called the bluff of Green Bay management, forcing them to either take him back or trade him for virtually nothing - since that's what the teams to which they want to trade him are apparently offering.

Why do we care? Because the prospect of having to give away a talent like Favre for nothing really rubs against the team that rebuilt the Packers into serious contenders via wheeling, dealing, and drafting. And thus the previously inconceivable... Favre ending up in Minnesota or Chicago... now seems actively back on their menu.

GREEN BAY, WIS. - The Green Bay Packers, driven to the brink of desperation in their ongoing spat with Brett Favre, have discussed internally the possibility of trading the quarterback within the NFC North Division.

A source close to the situation told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Wednesday that the Packers were considering seeking a deal with one of their division rivals, most likely the Vikings or Chicago Bears, if backed into a corner by the NFL and public sentiment.

It's pretty clear now the Packers' management is terrified of the split in their locker room should they try to keep Favre on the roster as a backup. And they're just as terrified that they'll lose Aaron Rodgers to free agency very soon if they bring him back as the starter. Not to mention losing the season over the circus that would follow Favre to the Packers' training camp.

If this is remotely possible the Vikings should leap at the chance. Brett Favre at 38 is so much better than the still developing (if he ever will) Tarvaris Jackson it shouldn't even be a close call. QB is the question mark every analyst has pinned on the Vikings as THE weakness going into the season. And it's a rather important one. Plug Favre into that spot and watch how quickly the Vikings are mentioned along with teams like the Patriots as favorites to reach the Super Bowl this year.

Could it fail? Sure. But is it any more likely to fail than the plan with Tarvaris Jackson as starting QB? Not even close.

Any Viking fan paying close attention was ridiculously pleased to see Gus Ferotte signed and John David Booty drafted for a reason, and it wasn't because we hoped Tarvaris would catch a nice break having a seat in the fourth quarter with backups handling mop-up duty sitting on a huge lead.

It's obvious they no longer want him in Green. Here's hoping we get a chance to see Favre in Purple.

(In related news, I think Obnoxious Packer Guy has a few good blogging years left in him yet. I'm not offering him a spot here or anything, so it's not tampering. I'm just saying... )

UPDATE: Siefert at ESPN: "A week ago, the chances of Green Bay willingly moving Favre to Minnesota seemed remote. Now, the dial is slowing moving. Thursday, we're at 'possible.' How ironic."