The Games People Play: Eric Mangini Invites Brett Favre to Cleveland Browns Camp

The word on the gridiron is that Eric Mangini has extended an invitation to Brett Favre to join him at the Cleveland Browns' camp, reports Daily News' Gary Myers.

Mangini seems to be operating under the impression that veteran tutelage to Browns' quarterbacks Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson would be beneficial. Of course, this is if both quarterbacks are still on the roster by Week One.

"I don’t think it would be anything formal," Mangini said. "It’s not like we are hiring him to run the scout team. I don’t think he would be interested in that. He would be more like a visitor. An open invite."

You're a mean one, Mr. Mangini. I see what he's doing there, and I don't like it. It's calculating, cold, and cruel.

If I weren't an avid supporter of the New York Jets, my maniacal laughter would be piercing the air in midtown Manhattan, much like Mangini's laughter is echoing through the suburbs of Berea.

Not for one moment do I believe that Mangini has any interest in allowing Favre to teach his new quarterbacks how to effectively throw 22 interceptions and miss the NFL Playoffs.

What he's trying to do is complicate things for the Jets. What he's trying to do is get Favre to spend some time around pro football again and make him re-consider his retirement.

What he's trying to do is throw a huge fork-wrench in the Jets' 2009 plans.

Inviting a man who has been historically indecisive regarding his retirement to a professional camp is only going to whet his insatiable appetite for football.

It's as if Mangini's trying to push Favre into the ESPN headlines for another summer.

This is the equivalent of opening a bottle of scotch, aged 17 years, in front of a recovering alcoholic—except Favre isn't aged to perfection and the Jets have completed their 12-step program.

On the surface, Mangini's intentions look simple enough: have a Hall of Fame QB intruct a thing or two. He can play coy to any questions about their relationship, insist that he's always loved Brett, and remind everyone that his youngest son is named after him.

Mangini's plan is simply diabolical. Now he shows what he learned under Bill Belichick.

Mangini has found a way to subtly tamper with a player on another team. Despite being retired, Favre is still technically under contract with the New York Jets.

What if Favre accepts the invitation, falls back in love with football, and decides he's not totally finished?

If that's going to be the case, fans can start eating some of the popcorn they were preparing for Terrell Owens in Buffalo a little early.

Favre's $13 million salary comes back on the books, and the circus returns to Florham Park—featuring Rex Ryan diving into a glass of water. 

Favre's fans will rejoice, Jets' fans who were prepared to move on will weep openly, and Mangini will laugh.

Of course, it's all hypothetical. Favre was merely "invited," not commanded. Old No. 4 can decide not to RSVP, stay home, and stick to his retirement guns—so to speak.

And even if Favre does show up in Berea, maybe he can effectively play the instructor role without longing for a full-fledged return to the game.

Perhaps he can find satisfaction in teaching someone everything he knows while hanging out with his old buddy Eric. 

It sounded funny to me while writing it, but it's not totally outside the realm of possibility, is it?

Regardless, if this truly does rekindle Favre's flame for football, then Eric will prove to be the slickest man in sports this side of Vince McMahon. This may be one of the first real "Mangenius" things he's done since about 2006, in fact.

Angel Navedo is a contributing writer to TheJetsBlog.com. He is also the Examiner for the New York Jets and the Head Writer at NYJetsFan.com. 

He can be reached here.