Is Irsay considering Favre in Indy?
BRETT FAVRE, Football
Age 41 wasn’t too kind to Favre — consecutive starts streak over at 297, a concussion, a sexting scandal — but 40 was pretty sweet. He led the Minnesota Vikings to the NFC Championship Game behind a career-best 68.4 completion percentage and a career-low seven interceptions. His 4,202 passing yards was his best in 12 years and the third highest in his 20-year career.
Credit: AP (2009)
Colts owner Jim Irsay is an avid participant on Twitter, and he announces his share of news on the social media forum. Could it be that he is hinting that the Colts are making a play for quarterback Brett Favre, who announced his retirement after last season with the Vikings?
Irsay has left a trail of bread crumbs on his Twitter account - @JimIrsay – about his uncertain quarterback situation. Yesterday, he tweeted that the Colts are concerned about Peyton Manning being ready for the regular season after undergoing off-season neck surgery.
“We r evaluating the QB sitch, #18 healing but we got 2 be prepared 4 early season possibility without him, defense has to pick it up, big time!” Irsay tweeted.
Irsay even asked fans in a subsequent tweet about their choice for a veteran to replace Manning in the short term. He also said the team would not take former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor in Monday’s supplemental draft.
Today, things became even more mysterious when he tweeted: “I’m in Mississippi,down at the crossroads....looking 4 that deal Mr. Johnson cut so many years ago....”
Mississippi? As in the the home state of one Brett Lorenzo Favre? A few minutes after that tweet, Irsay wrote on his account:
“Brad, I’m in Hattiesburg … is it right or left at the Firechief?”
Brad? Mr. Johnson? Could he mean Brad Childress, the former Vikings coach who brought Favre to Minnesota in 2009? And Jets owner Woody Johnson, who traded for Favre in 2008?
The Colts weren’t directly commenting on speculation that Irsay might be considering bringing Favre out of retirement in case Manning isn’t ready to start the season. And Favre’s agent, Bus Cook, didn’t directly address the situation either.
“Last I heard he was on the tractor mowing the back 40!” Cook said in an email. Cook was asked directly if Favre might consider the Colts, but he didn’t immediately reply to the question.
Which leaves us all with one word whether or not there’s anything to all this: hmmmm.
Favre's name did come up on connection with the Dolphins earlier this summer, when Miami coach Tony Sparano didn't flatly deny the team had any interest in the quarterback. Jeff Darlington of the Miami Herald traveled to Hattiesburg and tracked Favre down. Favre told Darlington he had no interest in playing for the Dolphins.
“I haven’t heard anything, and I don’t have any interest,” Favre told Darlington.
If Irsay is actually in Hattiesburg and if he actually asks Favre whether he's interested in playing for the Colts, there's no telling what the quarterback might say. After all, Indy is a far better team than Miami, so perhaps Favre would have an interest in playing for a third team in the last four years.
And then again, maybe this is Irsay just engaging in a little Twitter fun. But this is Brett Favre, so you never know.
