Brett Favre is hoping New York is his kind of town.
Favre, the most prolific passer in NFL history, was introduced Thursday by the New York Jets, who acquired him in a trade with the Green Bay Packers.
"To a certain degree, I do not know what I'm getting into," he told reporters at a packed media conference in Cleveland, where the hometown Browns hosted the Jets in a pre-season game.
"I'm here for one reason. Not to do commercials, Broadway all those things. I'm here to help the Jets win."
Favre was traded Wednesday to the Jets for a conditional fourth-round draft pick - ending his 16-year association with the Packers and pro football's biggest off-season soap opera.
"I think all parties involved felt this was the best result for a difficult situation," Packers general manager Ted Thompson said.
"The train has left the station," Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said.
The pick will adjusted to a third-rounder if Favre takes 50 per cent of the snaps from centre this season, a second-rounder at 70 per cent and a first-rounder if he leads the Jets to a Super Bowl berth.
"He represents a significant addition to this franchise," Jets chairman Woody Johnson said.
Favre, 38, is fresh off one of his productive seasons, one in which he led Green Bay to the NFC championship - only to lose 23-20 in overtime to the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants.
To make room on the roster, the Jets released veteran quarterback Chad Pennington, leaving Favre and Kellen Clemens as the quarterback tandem.
New York's season opener is Sept. 7 versus the Miami Dolphins, a division rival.
"We have accomplished a lot of great things with Chad," Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum said in a statement.
"He gave his heart and soul to this organization for a long, long time. I really appreciate everything he has done."
Retired March 6Favre retired March 6, yet he had a change of heart and requested, in writing, to league commissioner Roger Goodell, to be reinstated.
But Packers management was reluctant to welcome him back with open arms, wanting instead to see what it had in prospect Aaron Rodgers.
"It is like a marriage that ends," Packers president Mark Murphy said. "It happens [and] neither party is at fault."
The Packers reportedly offered Favre upward of $25 million US to stay retired, and further tried to dissuade him by handing the starting position to Rodgers.
Favre was told he could return as the backup quarterback, even though he had started every game for the Packers since 1992.
Favre bolted training camp following six hours of candid conversations with team management.
"There is no ill feelings," McCarthy said. "He has a positive reputation within this organization."
A nasty rift has formed between Favre and the Packers, who reportedly received trade overtures from both the Jets and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
"There was no negotiation," Buccaneers GM Bruce Allen said. 'There was never any substantive talk of what they would take.
"All of that was speculation. From the beginning, I think it was clear it was a bad situation in Green Bay, and they had to deal with it any way they could."
Holds several NFL recordsFavre holds the NFL record for consecutive starts (253), having started every game for the Packers in each of the last 15 seasons.
He also owns the league marks for completions (5,377), attempts (8,358), passing yards (61,655) and touchdown passes (442).
Favre was drafted out of Southern Mississippi by Atlanta in the second round (33rd overall) in 1991, and played two games for the Falcons before being traded to the Packers for a first-rounder on Feb. 11, 1992.
He has been named to nine Pro Bowls and voted the NFL's most valuable player three times (1995-97), and led Green Bay to a 35-21 victory over the New England Patriots 35-21 in Super Bowl XXXI.
Favre is one of two NFL quarterbacks to surpass 60,000 yards, the other being Hall of Famer Dan Marino (61,361).
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Contact Us About Us HomeTuesday, November 18th, 2008