Mon 11 Aug 2008
HEMPSTEAD, NY – Record crowds didn’t bombard the practice facility to watch Brett Favre undergo his first practice with a new team the last time he was traded for a draft choice. Before the 1992 season, the Atlanta Falcons shipped Favre to Green Bay for a first-round pick; a move that resulted in three MVP awards, two Super Bowl appearances and one championship for the Packers franchise. Favre forged a career that should land him in the Hall of Fame on the first ballot. But 15 years after arriving in Wisconsin, the storybook ending of the Packers legend retiring at the top of his game was nullified when Favre decided to return to the NFL. Deciding to move on, Green Bay finally ended the nearly two-month long soap opera by shipping him to the Jets for, you guessed it, a draft choice.
HEMPSTEAD, NY – In two months, the world’s attention will focus on Hofstra when the university hosts the third presidential debate. Judging by yesterday’s crowd on the north campus, Barack Obama and John McCain will be hard pressed to earn as much praise as Brett Favre. Nearly 10,500 fans inundated the Hempstead-based school to watch Favre participate in his first practice with the Jets since the blockbuster trade with Green Bay was consummated last week. Shortly before 1:30 p.m., Favre received his first standing ovation for simply walking from Weeb Ewbank Hall to the field wearing a protective red jersey and his famous No. 4. He waved to the fans before commencing his stretching exercises, acknowledging a fan base that experienced a febrile reaction to the trade news by purchasing replica Favre uniforms in record numbers.
HEMPSTEAD, NY — In April, Kellen Clemens met the Pope. Yesterday, the Jets backup quarterback became acquainted with the messiah. Nearly 10,500 fans—or roughly the average attendance of an Islanders home game—packed Hofstra University to witness Brett Favre’s first practice as a member of the Jets. Considering Clemens had his newborn daughter Kate Elizabeth blessed by Pope Benedict XVI during an open-air Mass at Nationals Park in the spring, the frenzied environment might have seemed almost tranquil. Clemens, who worked with Favre and fellow QBs Brett Ratliff and Erik Ainge, entered training camp in an open competition with Chad Pennington for the starting job but is now regulated to serving as understudy to a future Hall of Famer. Instead of sulking, Clemens said he is excited to learn from a passer who owns most of the NFL’s passing records.