QB Brett Favre Traded To The Jets

The Green Bay Packers have traded QB Brett Favre to the New York Jets, and they will receive a conditional draft choice. It starts off as a 4th rounder, escalates to a 3rd rounder if Favre plays 50% of the snaps, escalates to a 2nd rounder if Favre plays 75% of the snaps and the Jets make the playoffs, and finally, it will escalate to a 1st rounder if the Jets make the Super Bowl.

Thank God this is finally over with. I'm certain that most of you are with me in that you're tired of reading the daily and sometimes hourly Favre updates. I don't pay too much attention to ESPN, but double goes for those who do.

My thoughts on the situation are that more of the blame falls with Favre than with the Packers. Favre put this team into a tough situation on a yearly basis by delaying his decision on retirement until late in the offseason, and almost always until after the draft. I have a feeling that this season the Packers finally had enough, and they told Favre that he needed to make a decision sooner this year. Favre retired, and then regreted his decision, prompting this comeback. At that point, once Favre forced his hand by filing his re-instatement papers, the Packers took a hard line stance of doing what was best for the team. They had already committed to Aaron Rodgers, and considering he's viewed as their QB of the future, they weren't going to throw him back on the bench. The Packers also weren't going to trade him within the division, possibly affecting their ability to win the division. I think everyone knows that the Vikings are a good QB away from being a very dangerous team, and they had the most interest in Favre. That left Tampa Bay and New York. Favre preferred Tampa Bay, but trading him to Tampa Bay might affect their ability to get into the Super Bowl, despite that being a longshot, and Tampa Bay wasn't offering as much as New York was. Trading him to the Jets was the best move for the Green Bay franchise, and I'm glad they took a hard stance regarding the matter, and did what was best for the team. Rodgers isn't an upgrade over Favre for 2008, but he's as ready as he'll ever be this year, and the Packers want to see what they have in him as they prepare for the future of the offense. Talented rookie Brian Brohm moves to 2nd string.

Fantasy Impact: The New York Jets was my preferred landing spot for Brett Favre. He's a very solid QB2 selection, although I'd be very hesitant to make him my QB1. He will be plenty motivated to turn in a great season, however, and has similar talent around him compared to Green Bay. Thomas Jones should see more TD opportunities with a better QB, so his value rises. Laveranous Coles and Jerricho Cotchery both have a better QB with a much bigger arm throwing the ball to them, so their value rises. I was already bullish on Cotchery this season, but I like Coles more with the trade. I'll update both WRs below. Dustin Keller will see lots of time in the slot this season, and he becomes a slightly stronger TE2 pick. It's good news for the entire Jets offense.

I already ranked Aaron Rodgers assuming Brett Favre wasn't going to return to the Packers, but obviously this secures him as a very intriguing QB2 selection.