Fran Tarkenton is not Brett Favre’s biggest fan.

Fran Tarkenton:

“I think it’s despicable. What he put the Packers through last year was not good.  Here’s an organization that was loyal to him for 17, 18 years, provided stability of organization, provided players. It just wasn’t about Brett Favre. But, you know, in this day and time, we have glorified the Brett Favre’s of the world so much, they think it’s about them. He goes to New York and bombs. He’s 39 years old. How would you like Ray Nitschke playing in his last year for the Vikings, or how ’bout I retire, and go play for the Packers? I kind of hope it happens, so he can fail.”

But wait, there’s more!

“It’s about team.  It’s not about Brett Favre.  So he goes and runs up to the Jets, doesn’t even dress in the locker room with the players, has a separate facility…it’s all about him, and it’s supposed to be all about your team.”

Tarkenton then proceeds to list a lot of big games that Favre blew that I’d rather not remember.  This is only a small sampling of the rant.  To listen to the audio of the whole Favre segment, click here.

Tundra Vision misses the good ole’ days

The funny thing about nostalgia is that things were almost never as good as we remember them to be.  A perfect example of this is on display at Tundra Vision today:

Journalism was once a noble profession, because we trusted those writing for us to be noble, honest, and to have integrity.

First of all, journalism has never been any more or less noble than any other profession, and journalists have always been prone to the exact same biases and flaws as anyone.  The idea that journalists were some kind of pure crusaders for all that is right in the world until 1994 is absurd.

Secondly, sports journalism doesn’t need to be unbiased, even in its most ideal form.  Sports are games.  On the list of things that are truly important, they fall somewhere between American Idol and what Michael Savage says about anything.  So it doesn’t really matter if Greg Doyel wants to rip on Favre apologists in his columns, just like it doesn’t matter if I want to rip on Lions fans for being from Detroit.

Anchors were encouraged to develop catchphrases and inject their personality into the show, so you were just as likely to tune in to see Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann perform their little comedy routine as you were to see what happened on the field that day.

The reason new media serves as a refuge from people like Dan Patrick isn’t because blogs don’t inject their personality into their writing; it’s because their personality is more interesting, and their jokes are funnier.  Scrolling through the comment section on a single post from Deadspin will deliver more laughs than an entire year’s worth of Rick Reilly’s columns.

Finally, Tundra Vision’s logic seems to have a paradox:

Today’s sports media is aghast that their jobs as they knew them are in jeopardy, but in part, that is their own doing.

The people Tundra Vision is accusing of bad journalistic practices (ESPN, Jim Rome, PTI, etc.) are not in any danger of losing their jobs.  As much as ESPN sucks (and I completely agree that it does), it’s not in danger of fading into obscurity any time soon.  In fact, the people who are losing their jobs are the very people Tundra Vision defends:  the entirely objective, facts-only, no-commentary newspaper reporters.  And the biggest reason they are losing relevance is because newspaper is an outdated medium.  Why do I need to read a recap of Sunday’s games in Monday morning’s newspaper when I can instantly find scores, stats, and all the other facts about a game instantly online after the game?  And for more in depth analysis of a game, I can wait a few more hours after a game and browse through the Packers blogosphere to find a detailed breakdown of just what went right and what went wrong.

Of course I could be wrong.  Maybe it is all Jim Rome’s fault.

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel discovers Photoshop.

 

Photoshop is really neat-o!

Now they just need to find less nonsensical ways to use this fascinating technology.

My Thursday Night Football parties just got a lot less crowded.

Comcast and the NFL finally reached a compromise on the 2-year dispute over which cable tier to put NFL Network on (If this sounds like something not worth a seemingly interminable 24-month blood feud, that’s because it isn’t.)  That means cable customers can now watch Thursday night games, and that means I’m not the only person on my block with the game on.

Remember that story that said Favre was having surgery? Yeah, about that…

In the latest edition of “Did Brett Favre sneeze today?,” there is a new conflicting report out saying that Favre wants to heal his arm without surgery.

From ESPN’s Ed Werder:  ”Favre, however, remains focused on nonsurgical options, including cortisone injections and natural movements like light throwing and bicep curls that might cause the tendon to release naturally, the source told ESPN.  If the tendon releases and the pain subsides, Favre is virtually certain to play again.  If he has surgery and his arm strength diminishes or the pain remains, he will remain retired.”

So basically, Favre’s return is still inevitable.  Now there’s just two different anonymous sources telling us two different stories about HOW he will return.

Favre to have surgery on shoulder; in other words, Favre to become a Viking

Brett Favre will be having surgery on his right shoulder.  The most logical conclusion to reach from this is that Favre is intent on returning.  Circle your calendars:  Monday, October 5 and Sunday, November 1st.  It’s gonna be a circus.

Nick Collins is unhappy with his contract, unless you ask Nick Collins

Nick Collins’ Agent:  ”For now, unless the team is willing to at least discuss the contract situation, we don’t see any need for Nick to participate on the field.”

Nick Collins:  ”I don’t have a problem with my contract.”

So, who knows more about what Nick Collins wants, Nick Collins or his agent?  My money is on his agent.

ESPN: Ed Hochuli is so hawt.

ESPN published a sprawling behemoth of an article about Ed Hochuli, which included this gem:

“His muscles exploding out of his tight, striped shirt, [Hochuli] exuded confidence with every blast of his whistle, and women gathered around HDTVs, entranced, as he explained so forcefully and eloquently, why he had thrown his yellow flag.”

ESPN just can’t quit Ed Hochuli.

You’re not tired of Brett Favre yet, are you?

This story isn’t done.  Apparently, “sources” are now saying that Favre sent X-rays to the Vikings, and if the Vikes think his shoulder injury won’t require surgery, they will sign him.

We’ll keep you updated when “sources” tell ESPN that Favre is most definitely staying retired.  And we’ll keep you updated when Favre inevitably signs with the Vikings.

Until next time,  good day.

I sure love anonymous sources.

Favre is apparently staying retired. That’s what an anonymous source told Yahoo! Sports.  It’s a good thing anonymous sources are 100% reliable.

Thankfully, the now years-long Brett Favre saga is finally over*

 

*It’s probably not over.