“Listen,” I would tell the non-believer, “I don’t care if the bones inside Brett Favre’s right hand have been ground into a fine powder. If the skin is attached around the fingers, and the hand is attached to the wrist, he will play.”
On other occasions, it came out like this: “When I see Brett Favre’s football team take the field for an offensive possession, and #4 is not under center, that’s when I will believe that the streak is over.”
And one time: “Unless Favre is fastened to an operating table with doctors amputating his arms and legs, he will start on Sunday.”
…but all things must pass, and all streaks end, and so it will be tonight when Brett Favre, the man who tortured Bears fans for 12 seasons (and frightened us for another five), stands on the sideline and watches his offensive teammates play professional football without him.
Take a bow.
There’s lots to discuss here, and I must be getting on my way to trudge homeward through this Chicago snow, but I wouldn’t feel proper without taking a few moments to share the most powerful of my Favre memories. We’ll go with four big ones, in honor of #4.
1. Favre leaping into the arms of a lineman after throwing a touchdown.
This one is special because it happened 59 times against the Bears, the most of any Favre opponent. Hooray for us. Particularly painful entries include…
…his 99-yarder to Robert Brooks at Soldier Field.
…his 85-yarder to Donald Driver in Champaign, the kickstart to one of my least favorite Bears-Pack games of my career, which I was fortunate enough to attend.
…any of the four he threw to Bill Schroeder, a briefly employed Packers receiver who Bears fans despised when he, after a reporter asked him if he was excited for the upcoming Bears-Pack rivalry game, announced something to the effect that, “Rivalry? What rivalry?”
2. Favre’s skill at upsetting me, even when the Bears were not directly involved.
This happened a lot too. Most notably, we had…
…the whoops-where’s-the-ball? walk-off TD pass to Antonio Freeman in overtime of a Vikings game, occurring on my 19th birthday.
…Favre beating up Green Bay in his first Pack-Vikes game as a member of the purple & gold, leaving my dear friend Tony in ruins.
…Favre hitting Sterling Sharpe for a game-winning TD in a wild card playoff game against Detroit. This was Favre’s first playoff game, and the first bit of Brett Favre magic.
…all of Super Bowl XXXVI.
3. Favre getting tossed around in the Lovie Smith era.
This was a great deal of fun! Standout games were…
…the 19-7 beating in 2005 (click here for video) in which Mike Brown and Tommie Harris threatened to end #4′s career on the spot. This was probably the closest I’ve ever seen Favre to actually leaving a game.
…the 35-7 snow game in 2007, (my favorite Bears-Pack game I ever attended), in which Favre nearly ended his Pack career against the Bears with an 85-yard INT TD by Brian Urlacher. (Sadly, the Pack got another possession, and Favre threw a few more passes.)
…the 36-30 OT game last season (AKA The Devin Aromashodu Game). We didn’t actually toss Favre around in this one (he was terrific: 26-40, 321 yards, 65.0%, 2TD/0INT, 106.4 RAT) but after giving up 392 yards passing to Favre a month earlier, it just felt good to get the W.
4. Favre losing in spectacularly Favrian fashion.
No one killed his team more spectacularly than Brett Favre. This is not just some recent trend (though it was highlighted nicely the past few seasons) but something he has been doing since the jump. He’s not the NFL’s all-time leader in interceptions for nuhtin’ folks. There are many to choose from, but this video clip says it all:
Some people may have found that last clip difficult to watch. Others may have found it hilarious. That’s what made the Brett Favre ride so memorable. It was the wins and the losses, the touchdowns and the interceptions, and all of it ratcheted up by the incredible longevity. I don’t care how he did it, just that he did it. Enjoy the night off Brett. You’ve earned it.
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Jack M Silverstein is a freelance writer covering music, sports, and community in Chicago. He has written his opinion column "On the John" for 11 years. Say hey at 
the streak itself isn’ t that inpressie to me, but the things he accomplished over that time are