Brett Favre's Future Destinations

So yesterday, Brett Favre asked for his unconditional release from the Green Bay Packers. I've always had a a weird love/hate opinion of Favre. He was a consistent thorn in the side of my beloved 49ers in the 90's. If it weren't for him and Green Bay, the 49ers would easily have AT LEAST 2 more Super Bowls in their trophy case. Even though I hate him for that, I still respect the hell out of his talent, skill, and accomplishments.

Anyways, Favre's retirement has been quite a controversial topic since he announced his decision back in March of this year. It doesn't look like Green Bay is willing to just let Favre go without getting anything in return. But the Packers owe it to Favre to grant him his release after everything he has done for the community, fans, and franchise. Green Bay has not been shy in letting the media know that they are moving forward. They can't keep pulling the job away from Aaron Rodgers either.

Personally, I never thought Favre was done and believe that he still has one or two good (possibly great) seasons left in him. Hell, John Elway had two of his best seasons at the end of his career. However, this whole situation is extremely weird. The Green Bay Packers had the 2nd best record in the NFC and were a breath away from going to the Super Bowl last season. They are a contender. If Brett Favre were to come back and play this season, he's not going to join the Miami Dolphins or Houston Texans. Plus, he can't join an upper-echelon team such as the Patriots or Colts, because they already have firm Pro Bowl talent at the QB position. He's going to want to sign with a team that is a title contender. In my mind there are only a few possibilities for Favre's future destination...

5. Minnesota Vikings/Chicago Bears

4. Tampa Bay Bucs

3. Seattle Seahawks

2. Carolina Panthers

1. San Diego Chargers

5. Ah yes, the division rivals of the Green Bay Packers. Both the Vikings and the Bears have great talent on their teams. The Bears are a team that is just one year removed from the Super Bowl, and the Vikings are a team on the rise. The Bears would be foaming at the mouth to have a quarterback like Brett Favre on their roster. They've been plagued by the poor play of Rex Grossman for far too long. Having Adrian Peterson in the backfield or having a great Chicago Defense to rely on are enticing qualities that Favre could find attractive. But as long as he has been a Packer, I don't really see him joining the "enemies" of Green Bay. I just don't think he would do that to the fans.

4. Tampa Bay might be a good fit. They have a similar style offense than that of Green Bay and Favre could be comfortable there in the South. Plus, I think the fans would rather have Brett Favre in there instead of Jeff Garcia. However, even  though the Bucs are a playoff quality team...they aren really up there with the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts of the league. I don't think anyone truly thinks of Tampa Bay as a title contender. This destination is a stretch, but still a viable possibility.

3. How fitting would it be to have Coach Mike Holmgren and Brett Favre play their final seasons together. This is a pair that grew and developed with each other and won a super bowl together. There is no hatred among the two, and again Brett Favre could find his comfort zone with Coach Holmgren. Although Matt Hasselbeck is one of the better QBs in the NFL, his recent performances have been inconsistent. Holmgren has coached in 3 Super Bowls (so he knows how to win), and the NFC West is looking like an easy road again for the Seahawks. This is an appealing choice for Favre.

2. Carolina is another option for Brett Favre. This is definitely a team with great talent all-around, but they've been plagued poor play and injuries at the quarterback position. I'm not saying Brett would immediately step in and be starter, but he could sit behind Jake Delhomme and possibly have some time to play if Jake goes down or plays poorly. Plus, the Panthers have someone who Favre has never had in his career...Steve Smith. Smith is arguably the best Wide-Out in the game today. Packers fans can argue that Antonio Freeman and Donald Driver were good, but I'm not buying it. Steve Smith is the man and I'm sure he'd love to play with a future Hall of Fame QB. "FEED ME!!!"

1. The San Diego Chargers, the number one option in my opinion. Last season, they went all the way to the AFC title game and were just a breath away from beating New England to gain entrance to a Super Bowl. That was an amazing game, I saw a lot of heart from the Chargers in that game. They didn't have Ladanian Tomlinson, and Philip Rivers was playing on ONE good knee. A lot of teams would have just rolled over and given up but the Chargers fought hard until the end. Rivers is still extremely young and does play inconsistently at times. Favre would be a great supplement at QB with Rivers. The Chargers have the best Running Back and the best Tight End in the game today. Not to mention their receiving corps. is still young and growing (exactly what Favre had in Green Bay this past season). Their defense is young and talented enough to hang with the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots of the league, which they proved last season. Factor in all that, and the fact that he'd be playing in sunny San Diego...I think Favre would be quite comfortable with the Chargers.

Whatever, the future holds for Favre is unknown. I'd definitely like to see him help out San Diego, it would be a great story to the end of a Hall of Fame career. The man's an icon and he deserves to play at least one more season.

*Eagles, Redskins, Saints, and Broncos are other choices. But I think that the several options I listed would be the best for good ol' #4.