Tuesday, October 27, 2009

What to do when Brett returns?

This is a question which has been kicked about since the moment the Packers world knew Ol' #4 would be playing in the funky purple for the ViQueens: how should/will fans react when Brett Favre re-enters Lambeau Field? It's been discussed on sports talk radio and TV, in print and, yes, even in this blog where one of the ideas floated was to basically stand (or sit) in silence, turning one's back as if in a shunning ceremony. No boos, no cheers, just a turning of the back to "stick it" to Brett to reciprocate for his manipulating things to be able to play with this hated division rival so he could "stick it" to the Packers. Seems reasonable. Or not, depending upon perspective.

And there are many perspectives on this issue. One of the more reasoned ones is in today's online Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel by sports editor Garry D. Howard. He makes a compelling case for a bit of a middle path (the Buddha would be proud): cheering Brett loudly when he enters the stadium as a sign of gratitude for all he did for the Packers; then booing him just as vociferously (look it up) during the 60 minutes of play. As Howard states, "Deep down, he is a Green Bay Packer. And you know this. The hate you feel is just the passion that burns for the Green and Gold, not your true feelings about a player that some of you even named your sons after. So when No. 4 enters the building from which he was so famously extricated, show your class."

It seems, though, that a majority of Packer fans (or at least, those responding to the online poll) aren't quite on the same page with Mr. Howard about this. As of the time of this posting, more than 13,000 readers have voted on the Journal-Sentinel poll. And here are the results...

If you're in the stands at Lambeau Field when Brett Favre is introduced, do you boo or cheer him?
  • Boo him (49%)
  • Cheer him (31%)
  • Do nothing (20%)
Total Responses: 13,165

You can read Howard's article here. You can also find the poll there if you care to voice your opinion.

Or... you can vote in our own poll -- found in the righthand column -- and let us know how you think the fans should react when Brett enters Lambeau.

Well...we're waiting!