On Wednesday, football writer and former NFL safety Matt Bowen decided to look back on his days in training camp. One of the tidbits he noted involved his experience in Green Bay for training camp with the Packers prior to the 2002 season that he spent with the team.
During camp in Green Bay, the message was simple for rooks: If you hit Favre in practice, you would be given an apple & a road map. Goodbye.
— Matt Bowen (@MattBowen41) July 23, 2014
That's no surprise - in 2001, Brett Favre was a Pro Bowler who helped lead the Packers to a 12-4 season on nearly 4,000 yards, 32 touchdown passes, and 15 picks. He wore a red jersey for a reason: he was the star of that team, football's iron man, and the most valuable individual asset in the city.
Well, Danny Kelly of SB Nation's Seahawks blog Field Gulls saw this and helped expand on just how careful the Packers were with Favre, especially during the days when Mike Holmgren was coaching. Current Seahawks' GM John Schneider was a Packers scout from 1993-1997 under Holmgren, and Kelly recalls the two telling a story on a Seattle radio station:
@MattBowen41 John Schneider & Mike Holmgren were on local radio recently talking about a player that JS brought in and he hit Favre (cont)
— Danny Kelly (@FieldGulls) July 23, 2014
@MattBowen41 Homly didn't know who the guy was, but he was quickly shown the door -- and Holmgren had some choice words for Schnedier
— Danny Kelly (@FieldGulls) July 23, 2014
@MattBowen41 Schneider was giving him crap about it on the radio as one defining moment of his time in GB -- it was pretty funny
— Danny Kelly (@FieldGulls) July 23, 2014
Considering the time frame when both worked together in Green Bay, this is easy to believe. Favre won three straight MVP awards from 1995-97, and the team went to Super Bowls. The head coach was not about to allow a rookie, especially one signed by a scout (presumably as an undrafted free agent) jeopardize one of the best players in football.
So take a lesson from this, young Green Bay Packers: don't hit Aaron Rodgers in training camp, or you'll be out on the street before practice is over.