This past season, Brett Favre had arguably the best season of his career, leading the Green Bay Packers to a 13-3 record and to the NFC Championship Game, and in the process, broke several all-time league records, including the league's all-time touchdown, passing yardage, and win records.
As it turns out, this past season turned out to be his final season in the National Football League. Today, after 17 years in the NFL and 253 consecutive starts (275 including Playoffs), a streak dating back to 1992, Brett Favre has officially ended his storied career.
Favre was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the 2nd round with the 33rd overall selection in 1991, but his rookie season in Atlanta was timultuous. He spent the season 3rd on the Falcons depth chart, and his first pass as a Falcon was an interception returned for a touchdown. His off-the-field partying was seen as a liability by then-Falcons head coach Jerry Glanville. As a matter of fact, he skipped the Falcons' team photo because of a hangover. Glanville had enough of Favre's heavy partying off the field, and promptly traded him for a first round pick to the Green Bay Packers. Sportswriters at the time heralded the trade as one of the best moves the Falcons made, as they received the 17th overall pick. As fate would have it, on the 3rd game of the 1992 season, in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals, then-Packers starting QB Don "The Majik Man" Majkowski suffered an injury serious enough to result in him missing four weeks, and Brett Favre was put in the game. He had a bad start, but with 1:07 left in the game and down 6, he led a miraculous comeback, and the Packers won 24-23. It turned out to be the final game the popular Majkowski ever started for the Green Bay Packers. Brett Favre has started every single game for the Packers since then. The Packers ended up having the last laugh in the Favre trade, as he led them to two Super Bowls (winning one of them), and broke virtually every passing record in the NFL in a Packer uniform. Meanwhile, the Falcons, even to this day, remain crucified for trading Favre.
Favre's lasting legacy is defined by his insane plays where you think the play is not going anywhere, only to improvise with the play and make a big play out of nothing. It is also defined by his will to stare down adversity in the face and overcome it. He started every game since that fated game in 1992, despite approximately 49 times being listed on the Packers' injury report. The off-season prior to winning the Super Bowl, he overcame a painkiller addiction. And he played despite family tragedies, such as the death of his father 24 hours before a Monday Night game against the Raiders (which turned out to be a defining game in his career), the death of his brother-in-law in an ATV accident, his wife being diagnosed with breast cancer (which she eventually defeated), and the loss of the home he grew up in at the hands of Hurricane Katrina.
Interesting trivia about Favre: his first pass in a Packers uniform (which happened to be his first career completion) was to himself. A lineman batted down his pass, and Favre instinctively caught it, and it went for -7 yards.
For an idea of how massive Favre's consecutive start streak is, since the streak started, 409 different QBs have started in the NFL, 11 of them having at one point been a backup to Favre.
Favre will be eligible for induction into the Pro Football Hall Of Fame in 2013, but he's a lock to be a first-ballot Hall Of Famer.
Brett Favre will be missed.
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Brett Favre
Legendary Quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, starter since September 20, 1992
NFL Career: 1991-2007
Only 3-time MVP in NFL History
Retired on March 4, 2008
