Dear Mr. Farve,

I have been a fan of yours since I was a little girl. One day, my uncle came home wearing a Green Bay hat, and since I liked the colors at the time, and was developing an interest in football, I decided to like the Packers. I thought about to going to grad school at the University of Wisconsin just so I could come to a game in Lambeau Field. Ok, that’s not the real reason why, but you get what I’m saying…it would have been a plus.

I’m not going to pretend I can quote all of your record breaking stats, or say I’ve seen you play every game of your 16 year career. However, I will say this: I truly admire your work ethic and love for the game. It was a pleasure to watch you play the game. Seeing you come out on the field to lead your team to victory after your father’s passing brought a tear to my eye. Trying to figure out how you play in that cold ass stadium with no gloves blows my mind. You’ve played in championship games, won MVP titles, and have created a new blueprint for one of the game’s most dynamic positions.

But really though, I’m going to need you to hang up the cleats. Your time in the spot light has come to an end. I watched your retirement speech on ESPN, and I cried. I almost bought the commemorative issue of Sports Illustrated. I felt your passion…and I believed you! I was ready to let you get the rest you seek. Now you are toying with me, all the younger quarterbacks who fear you’ll take their spot, with all the GMs thinking about adding you to their roster, and all the childhood fans like me who don’t know whether to cheer you back on, or off the field.

Please, I ask that you retire gracefully. Let’s not have an MJ situation, where you come back, only to have to leave with your head down in shame because you performed below the the legacy that you’ve created, and the expectations placed on you. I couldn’t deal with seeing you play second fiddle to someone else. Nor could I stand seeing you get dusted by some other dudes because your knees are beginning to go.

So you asked to be released by the Packers, huh? Where are you gonna go? Tampa Bay? How will you adjust to heat? Or maybe to the Chicago Bears? We know all about their QB drama; you’d fit right in. Who knows how any of this will even work out. As of now, you haven’t even requested to be made an active player again. The NFL is not sure what’s going to happen either. And training camp starts next week…

I’m worried for you, Mr. Farve. To be honest, this just looks like an older guy afraid to let go of his glory days. If you were an average Joe, you’d go out and buy something really outrageous that your wife would likely disapprove of. In this case, un-retiring, seems to be fitting that bill. You’ve won a ring. You’ll grace the Hall of Fame for sure. You’ve broken records and inspired quarterbacks everywhere. You’ve helped build a legacy. Now, go buy a yacht or something.

What if you don’t start? Maybe that’s not the most important thing to you. But I don’t see that. And yeah, it’d be nice to see your mentor another young quarterback. But let’s be honest. Are you coming back to play big brother, or to stay in the lime light? I hear its warm under there.

Signed,

A really cool fan.