Indecision Weighs on Fans

The coffee was hot, the eggs were over easy and the opinions were mixed Saturday after Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre told the world he hasn’t made up his mind about retiring from professional football.
Favre, at a press conference kicking off a Brett Favre Fourward Foundation golf outing in Mississippi, shot down reports that the gathering was to announce his long-awaited decision.
At Hometown Cafe on West Mason Street in Green Bay, the morning coffee klatch chewed on Favre’s nonannouncement and the factors that prompted it to be covered live on many area TV stations.
“It’s not an easy day-to-day decision for everyday people,” Hometown co-owner Brenda Hecker said of retirement. “There’s a lotta time yet. I wish they’d leave him alone. He’ll come out and tell us when he’s ready.”
“The sports reporters got everything all worked up,” offered Jan Johnson, of Ashwaubenon who wore his Packers 2002 NFC Division Championship sweatshirt to breakfast Saturday morning.
“The man doesn’t have anything to prove. He’s going to go into the (Pro Football) Hall of Fame either way,” said Johnson, a Lambeau Field season ticket holder since 1966.
Second-guessing Favre’s decision-making process was interlaced with complaints about the size of the bills for this year’s season tickets, the ever-present annoyance with the aluminum benches of the Lambeau Field bowl seats and the price of beer at any professional sporting event.
Some Packers fans believe that Favre’s prolonged indecision could hurt the team’s chances this year.
“I think he’s waiting to see what (the team) picks up for players,” said John Manders of De Pere. “I think he wants to know if they are going to find someone to protect him. I’d like to see him get five seconds of protection.”
Hecker said folks eating breakfast watched the morning’s televised news conference end to end, but she admitted that it wasn’t very busy.
“You could tell when it was over,” she said. “We got busy. I think everyone stayed home to watch it and then came out to breakfast.”