As I sat there watching the Packers begin the 2008 preseason against the Bengals on Monday night I could not help but begin to cheer for my guys in green and gold. Besides having the greatest uniforms in the NFL, the Packers also sport an exciting roster full of young, talented, aggressive players. Brandon Jackson made the Bengals defense look silly while running under, around, and through tacklers. However, my excitement truly peaked at the sight of Donald Driver and James Jones each running over Bengals defenders on their way to accruing some YAC (yards after catch for you non footballers). As Driver lowered his shoulder and laid out a Bengals defensive back I found myself smiling and pumping my fist. Then, as Jones trucked two defenders, lost him helmet, and sauntered into the end zone I found myself standing and cheering.

I was completely surprised by my own behavior because I had vowed not to support the Packers until Ted Thompson was run out of town. Let’s be honest, I love Brett Favre. However, as I watched Aaron Rodgers take a few sacks, throw a few passes out of bounds, and even scramble and safely slide in under defenders I began to notice something. I was not having a heart attack every time he dropped back to throw. Sure this took away some of the thrill of the game that I used to get from watching Brett Favre, but I must admit that I kind of enjoyed not freaking out with every pass.

As I stated previously, I love Brett Favre. Always have. Always will. However, in my sixteen years of watching Brett Favre I have suffered approximately 288 heart attacks. In case you were wondering, that is how many interceptions that my boy Brett threw during his illustrious tenure in Green Bay. For every magical, stumbling, underhand touchdown pass, I always knew that a disastrous, horrifying, behind the back interception was right around the corner. Perhaps this is part of what makes Favre so appealing. It is his combination of greatness and yet fundamental lunacy that makes all of us feel as if we could be the greatest quarterback of all time too.

I guess what I am saying is that while some of the thrill has clearly left the Packers organization with the departure of Brett Favre, I am not going to miss the feeling of a tightening chest every time he rolled out to pass. However, I hope that Brett Favre wins another Super Bowl before he retires so that he can cement his place in history as the greatest quarterback to ever play the game, but I simply cannot turn my back on the Packers organization entirely. I will always yearn for Favre to have had one more chance with this team because I truly feel like this team has the talent to win it all, especially with Favre at the helm. If Aaron Rodgers or Brian Brohm never captures a title with this talented group, many Packers fans will be left with the “what if” feeling that comes from Favre’s departure.

So I will cheer for Favre, but I will also cheer for the Packers. I cannot blame Aaron Rodgers for wanting to play, because if I was a pro I would want to play too. Ted Thompson is not on the field, so although I cannot stand his smug little face, I cannot hate the players because the GM drove Favre out of town. The bottom line is that any true Packers fan owes it to Favre to cheer him on no matter where he goes. Without Favre, Green Bay would likely still be regarded as football Siberia. A cold place where no one would have ever wanted to play. So to all those true Packers fans out there…cheer hard for Favre, cheer loud for the Pack, and pray we do not have to choose come Super Bowl Sunday.

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