Brett Favre has been an interesting sports figure in my life over the last couple years as he has gone from hero to enemy as he retired from the Green Bay Packers and then played for the Minnesota Vikings this year. With that said, I do respect him as a football player but I must bring to light a recent event that I find disturbing.
The disturbing thing to me about the pictures is not the severe bruises and swelling (I can somewhat comprehend how intensely physical the game of football can be). What is disturbing to me is the fact that the photos were taken and released to the public. I have been an avid football fan for many years and I have never heard of a football star taking or releasing pictures of their injuries before. Football players get through bodies injured and damaged week in and week out, but they don't have slide shows of their injuries produced to garner sympathy.
To try to explain Favre, I'm going to propose three rational possible explanations of why these pictures of his injuries were put out:
1) Favre did not know that pictures were being released. Maybe a family member was having fun and snapped the pics and then leaked them. Fair enough, but I don't see this as likely.
2) Favre allowed the pictures to be released because the injuries he had were the worst of his career. Maybe the bruises were so bad that Favre felt compelled to have photos taken and given to the press? Or maybe NFL players have bruises this bad on a regular basis. Favre has played through many injuries and I can't believe this was the worst beating he has taken. Which means that only the 3rd option seems logical to me....
3) Favre allowed the pictures to be released in an attempt to defend himself after his horrible interception at the end of the game. Think about this. Favre has never before released pictures of his injuries. But now after a big game where he choked, it looks like he wants to throw attention off of his poor decision and onto his injury, to cast himself as the warrior victim who survived a battle.
I'm not trying to hit a guy when he's down. I just want Favre to be a man and admit his mistake and stand by it. He's still a great player, he still had a great season, and played well in the playoffs this year. Instead of moving on, he had to make an excuse to defend himself.
To conclude: I respect that Favre was roughed up during the game and played through pain, but I don't respect the fact that he allowed the pictures to surface. Bruised ankle and hamstring? Yes, definitely. But it looks like there's also a bruised ego in the picture.
The updated pictures are greatly appreciated.
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