http://blogs.jsonline.com/packers/archive/2008/02/22/mccarthy-on-favre.aspx
McCarthy on Favre
By Rob Reischel
Friday, Feb 22 2008, 04:55 PM
Indianapolis - Packers coach Mike McCarthy said this afternoon that he
hasn't talked to quarterback Brett Favre since Feb. 15, but that he's
planning on talking to Favre soon and is hopeful the future Hall of Famer is
close to deciding on whether or not to return for an 18th NFL season.
"Hopefully we're close," McCarthy said. "We had a very good discussion last
week. I know Ted (Thompson) talked to him in the last couple days. I should
talk to him here in the next day or two.

"My whole thing with Brett is make a decision that you can commit 100% to.
That's what you have to do. For him, the season's still fresh. He's worn out
from the season. He's talking about it. He'll do the right thing."

McCarthy was asked what the holdup is with Favre's decision. Favre finished
second in the MVP voting and had indicated late in the season he'd have a
decision sooner than a year ago. Last year, Favre announced he was coming
back on Feb. 2.

"You go through all the things that people think, that hey, he should play,
he has a lot left, and that really has nothing to do with it," McCarthy
said. "It's not the fact that he knows he still can play. He had a great
time this year.

"It's just the fact that he's played a lot of football, and he's had to
fully commit himself and his family year in and year out. When you do get
older, you have more responsibility, and he just wants to make sure he'll be
able to commit himself 100 percent. Because if he doesn't think he's 100
percent in, he thinks it might be his time to walk away."

McCarthy said he's taking some good-natured ribbing from others across the
NFL who would love Favre to pack it up.

"Oh yeah," McCarthy said. "Players and coaches. `Tell that old guy to
retire.' I hear that all the time.

Other highlights included:

.. McCarthy said defensive tackle Johnny Jolly might not be ready for
training camp. Jolly suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in Week 10.

"It's going to be close and just like everybody that's come off a major
injury or been with a medical situation, we'll play the high side of caution
there," McCarthy said. "I'm not going to say he won't be ready for training
camp, but it may take all of training camp to get him ready."

.. McCarthy's offseason program will be slightly easier on veterans than
younger players.

"With us having a long season, we're going to start with the first- and
second-year players on March 17 and we'll start with the three-plus, the
veteran players on March 31," he said. "The veterans will have two less
weeks than we did last year."

.. McCarthy said the team would like to have running back Vernand Morency, a
restricted free agent, back in 2008.

.. McCarthy said the loss to the Giants in the NFC Championship game will
always stick with him.

"That game's always going to be there," he said. "It's a disappointing loss.
People don't want to talk about it. I'm just being honest. I don't dwell on
it. I don't wake up crying at night about it. But I do think about it. It
was a great opportunity, to be playing at home in the NFC championship game,
that we did not take full advantage of.

"It's something that personally I need to learn from as a coach and I can
promise you our football team will learn from that because there's aspects
of playing championship football that you need to continue to identify,
teach and command that it's done a certain way, because that's how you get
to the next level."

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