By DAN HOEHNE
daniel.hoehne@newssun.com
The boos were expected, but the timing of them wasn't.
After all, it was the detested Minnesota Vikings, now being lead by former Packer-icon Brett Favre, playing before the Green Bay faithful.
So of course, once that opening kick gets booted, I expected nothing less than booing the opposing team.
Actually, though, the boos had started long before that, pretty much as soon as the Viking bus was spotted heading toward Lambeau Field - most of it directed at Favre with certain words and hand gestures - which I don't get.
As much as the media probably overdoes it in gushing over Favre, so too are Packer fans way overdoing it in their display of vitriol toward the former face of the franchise.
I mean, what did he do that has so wronged the Packers?
In what way has anything he done served to stab his former fans in the back?
In recollection, after the NFC Championship game loss to the Giants, Favre announced his retirement and Green Bay was awash in tears that the man, myth and legend was hanging them up.
A little while later, after the bitterness of the loss, the pain of the season, had worn off, Favre decided 'hey, I want to give it another go.'
Upon being told of his desire to take another crack at it, head coach Mike McCarthy and general manager Ted Thompson essentially said, 'sorry Brett, when you retired, we began looking ahead with Aaron as the quarterback from now on. I guess you can come back, but we really want to give Rodgers the reins, so maybe it's best you take a hike.'
To me, at that point, the tie was cut, the choice was made and that was the end of Brett's playing days with the Packers.
So I wonder, what did the Green Bay fans expect him to do?
He went to play a year in New York, with mixed results.
The season ended and he decided, maybe now it's time to retire, and said as much.
But there was an intriguing team out there, in a familiar setting, the northern Midwest.
A team in Minnesota that seemed to have all the parts needed to be a Super Bowl contender, except a quarterback.
He knows he's only got a year or two left, he knows he can still play and wants another shot at a title.
But instead of taking one more shot with a team that seemed ready-made for him to join and help take the next step, he's supposed to not play anymore, or go play for a team far, far away with no chance at a Super Bowl, just to appease Packer fans?
Isn't that kind of like that demented ex boyfriend/girlfriend - we're not together anymore, but nobody else can date you either, unless you move 2,000 miles away where I won't see it.
When I was a youngster, my first football hero was Walter Payton, same with my older brother.
During a good portion of his career, the Bears teams Payton was on were truly awful, with him being the only real reason to watch.
But oh what a reason to watch he was.
I remember at times, in discussion with my brother, wishing that the Bears would trade him to a good team, just so he could be with a winner.
We were Bears fans, sure, but we were also such fans of his, we wanted whatever would work out best for him.
It's not an exact correlation, but it is somewhat similar.
Payton was on our team, and we hoped he'd get to play with a really good team, for his own sake.
Favre isn't on the Packers anymore, they showed him the door and have moved on without him.
He then saw a chance to play for a good team that he can help contend for a Super Bowl.
All the successful years he had, bringing the Packers back to glory, making Green Bay relevant and beloved again in the NFL, you'd think he'd have built up an allegiance from enough fans that would wish the best for him.
It's not like he had any chance of coming back to the Pack, and even if he did, he'd be likely sitting behind Rodgers, who has put himself in the upper echelon of NFL quarterbacks.
The Packer organization waved good-bye to Brett, the player, and are moving forward with a very good quarterback.
Favre has moved on and is making his own way and taking another stab at a title.
When the Vikings come to Green Bay, of course you expect there to be booing of the arch-rivals on the field - even some off of it.
But I guess I was surprised at the amount of hatred and demonizing of the man who did so much to lift up the franchise and city, because I don't quite get what he did to deserve it.
Dan Hoehne is the Sports Editor of the News-Sun. He can be reached at daniel.hoehne@newssun.com.
Wednesday, November 04, 2009 - www.newssun.com/WED-11-4-PackerColumn