MELISSA BLOCK, Host:
Brett Favre, the newly unretired quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, is in training camp today. He's waiting to find out if he'll be traded or given his old locker back. The Favre story has more twists and pivots than an episode of "24." Here's a crash course to get up to speed on this saga, courtesy of NPR's Mike Pesca.
MIKE PESCA: Brett Favre retired in March, wavered in April, denied rumors through June, unretired in July, and now that it's August, he's back in training camp. We used to call this a soap opera, but now shows like "Lost" and "The Wire" are known as serialized dramas. The programs themselves know it's hard for viewers to keep up, so in that spirit, in case you missed last week's episode...
Unidentified Woman: Previously, on Favre...
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BRETT FAVRE: Blue 58, blue 58, go.
I am officially retiring. I promised I wouldn't get emotional.
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BLOCK: A legendary quarterback retired March 6th, but it wasn't long before he began dropping hints he was having second thoughts.
Unidentified Man #2: And so the speculation continues. While Favre has said the reports about his itch to come back are nothing but rumors...
AP: Favre's agent Bus Cook told the AP that it was news to him, and in quotes, "I don't think that has anything to do with anything. He's retired, period, point blank."
BLOCK: Let me see if I get this straight: You are now 100 percent certain you want to play football.
FAVRE: Where is a different story. Yes.
BLOCK: But you want to play?
FAVRE: Yeah.
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Unidentified Man #4: Monday, August 4th, 2008 - exactly five months to the day after he retired and walked out of a Green Bay press conference, Brett Lorenzo Favre will sit down with the other quarterbacks in a Packer team position meeting.
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PESCA: Twists, surprises, intrigue - you can see why Packer fan Zack Snyder gets the saga's appeal.
ZACK SNYDER: The genius of the show is it requires no football.
PESCA: To hear Snyder's enthusiasm, you get the idea that he just might be the right man to direct our serialized drama. Also, apart from being a Green Bay native and Favre obsessive, he's the screenwriter and director of the movie "300," and is now working on next year's potential blockbuster, "Watchmen." He thinks that Favre can be painted as the reluctant gunslinger, embarking on the quintessential hero's journey.
SNYDER: That's what it begs. It begs those moments behind the scenes where he's grappling with his own demons, you know, and you sort of see the man behind the mythology, you know, that makes it even more compelling.
PESCA: Now a real football insider would probably think of it differently. The fact that Favre is in Packers camp is just one more of the never-ending developments which frustrate longtime Dallas Cowboys executive Gil Brandt.
GIL BRANDT: Now everybody's saying, what is he doing? You know, he wants to retire. He wants to come back. He wants to be a free agent, to go wherever he wants to. You know, those are all things that are confusing, and sometimes they wear on people. And I think this whole thing has wore on a lot of people in that they're ready to throw up their hands and say stop. Let's just get this thing over with one way or the other.
PESCA: But new questions arise. Will the Packers really relegate Favre to backup duty at a price tag of $12 million? Will he really be allowed to start? Will he be traded - ooh, new scene, new scene. Interior: New York. Sports radio station WFAN. Viewers hear the collision between the Favre name and a New York accent.
Man #4: If you're a Jet fan, make it Jet fans only - Favre, no Favre.
PESCA: Indeed, the Favre, no Favre question still hangs out there. The latest is if he's 100 percent committed to football, he'll be given a chance to actually start for the team. Mm-hmm. Stay tuned for scenes from next week's program. Mike Pesca, NPR News, New York. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
