Time to blog on something a little less stressful to my heart. Everyone who knows me personally knows that I am a diehard Green Bay Packers fan. Indeed, I am the Au Gratin Cheesehead (the world’s greatest native Idahoan Packers fan… potatoes and cheese… get it?)
So my cubicle is decorated with all manner of Cheesehead memorabilia. There’s my family picture, where me, Mom & Dad, my two brothers, my two nieces, and their mom are all wearing the foam cheese on our heads, as well as jerseys, t-shirts, and in my case, slippers (my poor wife is a Chargers fan; she’s gamely modeling her Flutie jersey). There’s this picture where I’m at a game in Phoenix, wearing nothing but shorts and green-and-yellow body paint. There’s my pennants, kleenex box, Christmas stocking, “Packers Locker Room” sign, and candy jar. And that’s just the few Packers items I don’t keep at home.
Anyway, when someone comes down to my cubicle for computer repair, invariably the first small talk question from their lips is, “So, are you from Wisconsin?”
“Never even been to the state,” I answer, “but my father went to school with Jerry Kramer, the Packers guard from the 1960’s who threw the crucial block for QB Bart Starr that won the ‘Ice Bowl’ NFL championship game.” It’s not exactly true. Kramer attended University of Idaho, Dad went to Idaho State University. But Kramer was from Boise, and Dad has met the man, and Dad really likes the Packers, and Mom & Dad were married when the Packers were NFL champions, on their way to becoming the First Super Bowl’s Champions. I was born seventeen days after their second championship. Being a cheesehead was destiny.
The second question is always, “so do you think Favre is going to hang it up soon?” or some variation. “No,” I answer. I think Favre has at least two more years in him, and if we could get anything resembling a pass defense, there’s a good chance the Pack could get to Super Bowl XL. Win it? I don’t know. Not if New England’s there; they have won every February Super Bowl in history.
If Favre remains in the league for another two years, he has a great shot at eclipsing some of Marino’s All-Time QB records, and in the process, blowing by former Denver QB Bucky Horseface. From Favre Watch on Packers.com:
| Record | Marino | Favre | 2004 Favre | Favre +2 Years (at 2004 pace) |
| Career Passing Yards | 61,361 (Elway 51,475) |
49,734 | 4,088 | 57,910 (+3 yrs: 61,998) |
| Career Passing Attempts | 8,358 (Elway 7,250) |
7,004 | 540 | 8,084 (+3 yrs: 8,624) |
| Career Completions | 4,967 | 4,306 | 346 | 4,998 |
| Career TD Passes | 420 | 376 | 30 | 436 |
| Career Wins as starter | 147 (Elway: 148) |
135 | 10 | 155* |
| Consecutive Starts | (Favre has QB record Jim Marshall: 270) |
205 | 16 | 237 (3rd) (+3 yrs: 253 (2nd)) |
* Even if the Pack only goes 8-8 for two years, he still hits 151 wins
