The NFL has produced a wide variety of hall of famers over the last 80 years, names like Jim Brown, Lynn Swann, and Walter Payton. There are also current players that are bound for the hall, such as Brett Favre and Jerry Rice.
Hey, speaking of Rice and Favre, they are two of the most talked about players in the NFL right now, each for close to the same reason.
Brett Favre has started 195 consecutive regular season games (214 if you include the playoffs), an NFL record for quarterbacks. Only a recent stretch has made the masses question if he can continue the streak through the rest of the 2004 season. The reason? During Week 4 during the Green Bay Packers game against the New York Giants in East Rutherford, NJ, Favre suffered a concussion. He left the game, but returned two plays later to lead his offense to a touchdown (Talk about tough!). However, that was his last play as he was obviously too impaired to continue. It did count as an official start though, but the Packers lost 14-7. Their record stands at 2-4, putting them in third place (out of four teams) in the NFL North. Despite the fact that Favre’s health has put his record streak in jeopardy, he is still one of the top rated QBs in the league.
Another player who has a first-class ticket to the hall after his retirement is new Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jerry Rice. Rice spent the majority of his career with the San Francisco 49ers, winning three Super Bowls and, along with legendary quarterback Steve Young, were the leaders of one of the best football teams of the mid ’80s through to the late ’90s. After the 2000 season, he was signed by the cross-bay Oakland Raiders. The following season, the Raiders went on their first Super Bowl run since the 1980 campaign. Despite losing to Jon Gruden’s Tampa Bay Buccanears, the season was still the most successful one that Oakland had since before they left Oakland the first time. Things went downhill from there as the Raiders finished 4-12, tied for last in the AFC West. Rice had a decent year, but there were signs that he was finally past his prime. This season proved it as he has , so far, only caught five passes for 67 yards and no touchdowns in six contests. Not only has he been demanding a trade since training camp, but the team has actually been shopping him around since that time. The problem is that not many teams are in the market for a 42-year old over the hill wide receiver in the twilight of his career, except for the Seattle Seahawks, who gave up a seventh-round draft choice in 2005 to land Rice. This will be the first time in his long career that he has played for a team not located within ten miles of San Francisco Bay. Will that be a good thing? We’ll have to wait and see.
Many want these two fine ambassadors to the NFL to retire, and salvage their great careers. After much deliberation over the subject, I have to agree. If I was in the place that these two are now, I wouldn’t want people thinking that I had a great career along with how bad I was at the end. I’s want them to simply remember the great things I did for my team, the National Football League, and the game of football, but then I thought. If I was in the position that Favre and Rice are, I definitely would not, after all the years and effort I have put into the game, like someone telling me that it’s over. It has to end. That person has no idea what I have sacrificed for the simple pleasure of playing football every Sunday for almost 20 years. I would want to make the decision on my own terms, and on my own time. Sadly, that doesn’t look like it will happen if the NFL front offices have their way.
