Not The Answer: Packers' '08 Struggles Have Nothing To Do with Brett Favre

There's no question that the drama between Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers has been well-documented. Whenever a franchise decides to trade it's most popular player ever—especially coming off a season where they were one game from the Super Bowl—there is going to be some negative public backdraft, and that's been the case here.

Everyone knows that when Packers General Manager Ted Thompson traded Favre to the New York Jets, he said goodbye to the NFL's statistical quarterback king; a legendary football player who has never missed a start, and probably still had another year or two of solid football in him.

But he also sent away one of the NFL's premier divas, a man who has handcuffed the Packers for years and has thrown more interceptions than any quarterback in the league's history.

In all fairness, however, Thompson never had a good relationship with Favre. He ignored Favre's unwise managerial wishes—namely signing Randy Moss and hiring Steve Mariucci as head coach—and because of that, Favre couldn't shake his fleeting resentment for Thompson and the rest of his staff. 

But through the years, Thompson still winced through the interceptions, and cheered for the touchdowns. Yet, this summer, he couldn't stand anymore of Favre's self-centered actions. We all heard what Favre said that teary April morning: It was getting too hard to be Brett Favre. He couldn't handle it anymore. He wasn't committed to this football team.

Faced with that egocentrical distraction to his football team, Thompson did what he had to: He sent Favre packing.

And guess what? Even with the Packers at 4-5, it's still the right decision. Not even the great Brett Favre would have altered that record as is stands today.

If you think I'm crazy, I challenge you to make a list of the Packers problems in 2008. Now tell me where Aaron Rodgers ranks on that list. If you've watched any Packer games this season, you'll find him somewhere near the bottom. Green Bay's problem isn't who is behind center, I'll guarantee you that.

Let's compare the two seasons, shall we? First off, the Packers were as close to injury-free last season as any team in the NFL. This season, however, the Packers would rank somewhere near the top, with two defensive starters out for the season (Cullen Jenkins, Nick Barnett) and several other significant contributors missing action this season.

Injuries are a part of the game, but they've really hurt Green Bay this season.

Next, look at the defense. Last season the Packers were ranked 11th in total defense; a year later they rank 21st. The most dramatic drop off has been run-defense, where that unit has dropped 14 spots from 14th last season to 28th this season. This is probably a result of the injuries, but Favre didn't do it alone last season, he got a lot of help from one of the league's better defenses.

And don't even get me started on the offensive line. Last season, there were three games where teams got significant pressure on Brett Favre. Guess which games? If you guessed the Packers' four losses, you nailed it.

In both Bears' games, the Dallas debacle, and the NFC Championship game, Favre had pressure seemingly every drop back, and he played terrible in those games. In 2008, Rodgers has met the same fate. Dallas, Tampa Bay, Tennessee, and Minnesota are all games where Rodgers was under heavy duress, and we lost all four.

Atlanta put moderate pressure on Rodgers, but that was statistically one of his best games in a losing effort. If there's one constant in the ever changing NFL game, it's that teams that don't protect their quarterback don't win games. Favre and Rodgers are solid proof of that.

Then there's the schedule. Did you know that the 2007 Packers beat 12 teams that had eight or fewer wins? That's not a typo folks, that's a fact. When you look at 2008, there's a strong possibility that at least 10 of the team's on the Packers schedule will finish with eight or more wins.

That's the beauty of the NFL people; strength of schedule can single-handedly change a team's fortunes from one year to the next. In the case of the Packers, however, it's hurting them this season.

Heck, I'll even discount the Jets' 6-3 start. First off, Favre wasn't the only big acquisition for the Jets this season; they also brought in Alan Faneca, Tony Richardson, Damien Woody, Calvin Pace, and Kris Jenkins. You could argue that those players have had a bigger impact on the Jets this season than Favre has. The point here is that this team is far from the 4-12 team it was last season, and they were bound to win more games with or without Favre at the helm.

And again, look at that schedule. They beat a Wildcat-formation-less Dolphins by less than a touchdown in Week One, an overrated Cardinals team (ask the 49ers Shaun Hill how terrible that secondary is, good grief), and then rattled off wins over the Bengals, Chiefs, and Rams.

I'm not even mentioning their loss to the terrible Raiders, and their only quality win looks like a win over Buffalo, who has lost three in a row. Who knows, Rodgers would probably be 7-2 with this team.

If you want, I can throw some stats at you, too. Rodgers ranks fifth in the NFL in quarterback ranking (93.3), Favre ranks 12th (89.8). Rodgers is ninth best in interceptions (5), Favre ranks dead last (12). I'll tell you what, regardless of who was the quarterback in Green Bay, if that player had 12 interceptions, the Packers' 2008 season would already be over.

Maybe I'm being too harsh on the man I still have an undeniable man-crush for. So let's say the Jets make the playoffs (which they should, if you look at the schedule), and the Packers don't—two pretty reasonable predictions at this point.

What happens after they lose in the playoffs? FOX Analyst Terry Bradshaw is on record saying he thinks Favre will retire, so who knows. Chances are, however, he will take a while to decide and, in the process, might flip-flop his decision a few times.

I think we can all agree there's a decent chance he flip-flops into retirement after this season, so then what do the Jets do? Start over? The Packers knew they'd be in that situation sooner or later, so they took the initiative and started it a year earlier. Now, this offseason, they won't have to deal with the Favre's diva plans, and they can have enjoy something they haven't had in years—a quiet offseason.

Thompson is getting the flak this season, but Favre wouldn't have saved the Packers from their current situation. And I bet your bottom-dollar that Thompson will be laughing to himself this offseason at the expense of Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum. Good luck with that one, Mike, and have fun with your one "miracle" season you have with Mr. Favre.

Oh, and Mike, I'm sure you won't mind Thompson taking one of your draft picks as well, right?