Original version originally posted on TheSportsCourier.com.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback and future Hall of Famer Brett Favre had reportedly opted to retire, according to multiple reports. ESPN's NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that Favre sent his Viking teammates text messages saying, "This is it."

Well, it turns out that's not the case—according to Favre anyway. He stated that he would wait until next week to get himself checked by Dr. James Andrews.

Really, Brett?

Favre will be remembered as one of the all-time great quarterbacks and rightfully so, in large part to three MVP Awards, 11 Pro Bowl appearances, and record numbers for consecutive starts (285), passing yards (69,329), completions (6,083), and dubiously, interceptions (317).

Green Bay Packer

Oh, he also won a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers in 1996 and took them to another one before falling to John Elway's Denver Broncos in 1997. No big deal! The Atlanta Falcons had him in 1991 and got rid of the most durable quarterback in history after the season. If only they had known...

This has been the third time Favre has practically sunk into retirement. He did so with the Packers, his team of 16 seasons (1992-2007), after throwing the game-losing interception at Lambeau Field in the NFC Championship Game against the eventual Super Bowl Champions, the New York Giants. 

Favre had the press conference. He had the spotlight on him (as always). He had the tears. He said he was done with football.

Jet Favre

Months later, he changed his mind.

The Packers weren't so keen in taking back Favre due to his age (39) and the fact that the team had spent years developing their first-round draft pick and heir apparent, Aaron Rodgers, who present-day, is a stellar QB in his own right (although it's far too early to tell how good he will actually end up being). 

So they traded Favre, culminating in the end of a once-unbreakable bond into a messy divorce. Many blame GM Ted Thompson for not taking Favre back in a win-now league, as the Packers faltered in 2008, going 6-10 after a 13-3 season. 

Meanwhile, the New York Jets acquired Favre in exchange for a conditional draft pick to turn their hopes around. And it started off great. The Jets were 8-3 at Week 12 and looked destined for the playoffs.

Too bad they lost four of five games to close out the postseason-less run at 9-7. The future Hall of Famer faced a brunt of the criticism, throwing only two touchdowns and eight interceptions during that stretch.

It was later revealed that Favre had a torn biceps tendon in his right shoulder, which the Jets failed to report and were later fined $125,000 after the QB opened his big mouth. It was also revealed that Favre didn't socialize much with his Jets teammates, let alone change with them. Running back Thomas Jones criticized Favre harshly in a radio interview following the season.

And poof, just like that, Favre was technically retired—AGAIN. This time quietly...or so we thought. 

The Unthinkable for Green Bay Fans

This is where things get touchy. Some blame Favre and his massive ego. Others blame GM Ted Thompson. Either way, in late summer of 2009, Favre joined the Packers' arch-rival Minnesota Vikings to become their starting quarterback, after conveniently avoiding training camp. He was even picked up by head coach Brad "My Beard is Weird" Childress at the airport. How thoughtful. 

Despite all the wear and tear on his body, Favre seemingly had a physical renaissance with career-highs in QB rating (107.2) and completion percentage (68.4), in conjunction with 33 touchdown passes, 4,202 passing yards, and a career-low seven interceptions. 

The Vikings were Super Bowl favorites, going 12-4 en route to an NFC North title. They also made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game against the number one-seeded New Orleans Saints in the Louisiana Superdome. 

Just like the Packers' Super Bowl aspirations in 2007-08, the Vikes' chances in 2009-10 were destroyed via a Favre interception that all but sealed Minnesota's fate, despite being in a clear position to win. And just like that, Favre faded back into the slightly-dimmer limelight, as everyone and their mother assumed he would be back.

Retirement (Part III)

Apparently, they were wrong. Or were they? As of the time of the publishing of this column, Favre has reportedly told the Vikings he will stay retired and then denied it, in large part due to his ankle not recovering as well as expected from surgery.

This revelation comes after a great statistical season with the Vikings, despite a minor (allegedly) blip in the radar, resulting in a spat with head coach Brad Childress late last season, when he wanted to bench his starting QB to protect him. 

I personally won't believe Favre is retired until I hear it from his own mouth. Unfortunately, his legacy is already being blown out of proportion. 

Yes, he is the most durable quarterback of all-time. Yes, he played the game with uncanny passion. And yes, he is a future Hall of Famer. But he is overrated by the media's love for him. Perhaps, it is his Southern drawl. Maybe it's his larger-than-life ego that he masks with a "good ol' Mississippi boy" persona. Regardless, the one statistic that reigns supreme is number of Super Bowl wins: One. 

That is not to say one Super Bowl win isn't enough to solidify a career.

But the hype around a player that hasn't won a Super Bowl since 1996, let alone played in one since 1997, tells me that as great as Favre was, he does not belong in the conversation with

• John Elway (two Super Bowl wins with Denver, five appearances overall)
• Terry Bradshaw (four Super Bowl wins with Pittsburgh, no losses)
• Joe Montana (four Super Bowl wins with San Francisco, no losses)
• Tom Brady (three Super Bowl wins with a New England team that had no-name receivers, four appearances overall). 

As ESPN's Skip Bayless once said, too many people these days are "prisoners of the moment." While I will always respect Favre's accomplishments, I don't put him over the aforementioned quarterbacks.

Bart Starr and Roger Staubach won two Super Bowls each, as did Bob Griese and even the now-shamed Ben Roethlisberger, although that doesn't necessarily mean they are better than Favre.

But he lost a Super Bowl. He even cost the Packers and Vikings Super Bowl berths via ill-conceived throws that turned into interceptions. To put Favre in the Montana-Elway-Bradshaw club and heck, even Brady club, given the lack of big-time receivers and running backs on his squads, is absolutely ludicrous. He even went a decade without going to an NFC Championship Game. 

Ego Trippin' 

Favre will always be remembered as an all-time great. Unfortunately for him, his ego has tainted his career in the process.

From holding teams practically hostage in his final season in Green Bay and just this current offseason in Minnesota by taking his sweet time deciding his future, to the shameless interviews he's done that poke fun at his real-life-stressing ambiguity (Well, the ambiguity hurt his teams, not him obviously). 

For the media types that said Favre "earned the right to take his time," I can understand that logic—just not after seeing this drama unfold the past five years. 

Take a page out of Kurt Warner's book, Brett. Warner made his recent retirement quick and painless via a simple press conference. Boom. Done. Goodbye, Kurt until we see you in the Hall. 

Favre has known what he's doing all these years. Don't let the good 'ol boy act fool you. He's smarter than he looks. 

Now that Favre is allegedly retired again, we can remember him for the nail-biting great moments of yesteryear, as well as his NFL iron man streak. We'll remember him for that Super Bowl victory with Green Bay.

We'll also remember his evolution from being a team player that cared about winning and the team concept to caring about himself and making sure the media stroked his ego on a regular basis.

Favre always wanted to win. In the end, he threw out the team concept and took only himself and not his teammates into consideration. At least he always wanted to win! Too bad it was always on his terms. 

Sorry, Brett. You let your ego get so big that the first words people will or at least, should, think of when hearing the name Brett Favre won't be "great" and "winner." 

The words?

Narcissist. Superficial. And the word that has your picture next to its definition—egomaniac. 

Good luck having people feel sympathy for you this time around.

"The F-Bomb" Fred Richani is a columnist for The Sports Courier. His work has been featured on CBS Sports, AOL FanHouse, ESPN.com, Sherdog, Google News, and USAToday.com. Richani currently resides in New Jersey, home of Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, and The Situation (allegedly).