Once again, Favre Fever is sweeping the NFL nation except this time no one has caught the Viking virus. We have symptoms of a possible attack, but no diagnosis yet.

All we know is that Jared Allen, Steve Hutchinson, and Ryan Longwell traveled to Mississippi (or Mississipi if you’re an Alabama Crimson Tide) to meet with Brett Favre. But let’s be honest here, you don’t send a placekicker to a meeting unless you want your business taken care of. So naturally, Ryan Longwell did his thing, and Favre responded by boarding a plane to Minnesota.

Yippee! This news is about as exciting as Cher announcing another Farewell Tour.

C’mon, we all saw this move coming. We saw right through the alleged text message retirement, and as soon as Brad Childress denied the rumors, we knew that the 40-year-old gunslinger would be back; back in the headlines that is.

Whether he is leading his team to a championship, or single-handedly ruining their season, Brett Favre is synonymous with headlines. So it should come to no surprise that Wednesday August 18^th marks the one-year to the date anniversary of Favre’s 2009 return. It’s like a fairy tale coming to life!

Just picture it: Brett Favre comes in after rehabbing his ankle to save the Minnesota Vikings. Oh wait, the Vikings don’t need to be saved. They arguably have the best running back in the game and one of the fastest rising stars in Percy Harvin. Not to mention one of the best defensive cores in the league.

Most any quarterback can be successful in that situation but we’re not talking about any old quarterback here; we’re talking about the old quarterback. The same QB who turned on one franchise (Google Green Bay Packers). The same QB who seems to feed off stealing the spotlight from his teammates showing little regard towards their careers, (Google Tarvaris Jackson).

But none of that seems to matter anymore. What Brett Favre wants, Brett Favre gets.

If he wants to skip training camp and toss the ball around a high school field, then he will do it. If he wants to retire and come back umpteen times, then he will do it. If he wants to play cat and mouse with his coaching staff… well you get the idea.

Something tells us that Favre didn’t need too much convincing from his fellow teammates to come back to the Vikings. Between Longwell’s persuasive skills (Google professional swift kick in the ass) and a potential cool $20 million offer, how could Favre say no? Let’s just forget the fact that he hasn’t shown his face to the rookies this year.

After all of this nonsense, it seems clear that #4 only thinks about being #1, regardless of what he may portray in the conference rooms.

Brett Favre may be a record holder but his lack of sportsmanship towards his teams and teammates will forever be remembered. As will the helicopter video shots following his vehicle along the road, reminiscent of a famous car chase we are all familiar with from the past. Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe Tweeted, “Helicopters acting like they are following O.J., Where is the bronco.”

Yes, it was a circus scene. But then again it’s the NFL preseason and what else should we expect when it comes to Brett Favre.

Used with permission of the author.

Logan Rhoades is a Los Angeles-based writer and contributor to Sports Climax. With an extensive knowledge of ESPN topics and celebrity gossip, he is known for mixing sports and pop culture to entertain his readers. Follow him on Twitter @loganrhoades.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

While NFC North rivals the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers were forced to sit idle during the free agency bidding wars, the Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions were the most aggressive teams on day one.

Lovie Smith and Da’ Bears snatched the biggest prize of the day when they signed defensive end Julius Peppers to a six-year contract worth a maximum $91.5 million. The five-time Pro Bowl player will receive a record $42 million guaranteed.

In addition to Peppers, Da’ Bears also snatched running back Chester Taylor from the Vikings signing the rusher to a four-year deal worth $12.5 million with $7 million guaranteed.

Knowing the importance of granting quarterback Jay Cutler more time to throw, they also added blocking tight end Brandon Manumaleuna from the San Diego Chargers.

Not to be outdone, the Detroit Lions made a few quick moves of their own, signing three sure starters when they inked deals with two defensive linemen and a No. 2 wide receiver.

Wanting to shore up a defense that was last in the NFL in points allowed and total yards, Lions head coach Jim Schwartz personally visited Tennessee Titans defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch at 12:01 AM on day one of free agency and convinced the Pro Bowler to sign with the team.

While Vanden Bosch and his agent were working out the details of a four-year, $26 million deal, the Lions also inked a $25 million contract with Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Nate Burleson.

Burleson played in 13 games for the Seahawks last year, catching 63 for 812 yards and three touchdowns and is expected to free up Calvin Johnson from the double and triple coverage he sees on a weekly basis.

Joining Vanden Bosch on the Lions’ defensive line will be Cleveland Browns Corey Williams, another proven starter who was obtained by a trade.

With the Lions adding these proven veteran linemen to their defense and with the team expected to use their No. 2 overall selection in the upcoming 2010 NFL Draft to select defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy, you can throw last year’s dismal defensive stats out the window.

These aggressive moves by the Bears and Lions are certain to make the NFC North more competitive.

Minnesota lost a huge piece of their offense when Taylor left and while Brett Favre sits on the fence in Minnesota still contemplating a return, The Green Bay Packers lost Pro Bowl defensive lineman Aaron Kampman to free agency as well.

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