No professional athlete has had a more difficult time deciding whether to retire than Brett Favre. So when he quickly refused an invitation by the St. Louis Rams to join their football team, there had to be a good reason.
During a radio interview Thursday, Favre admitted that concussions have robbed him of some of his memory, USA TODAY Sports reported.
"I don't remember my daughter playing soccer, playing youth soccer, one summer," he said when asked about his experience with concussions during an interview with Sports Talk 570 in Washington.
"I don't remember that. I got a pretty good memory, and I have a tendency like we all do to say, 'Where are my glasses?' and they're on your head. This was pretty shocking to me that I couldn't remember my daughter playing youth soccer, just one summer, I think. I remember her playing basketball, I remember her playing volleyball, so I kind of think maybe she only played a game or two. I think she played eight. So that's a little bit scary to me. For the first time in 44 years, that put a little fear in me."
Favre holds the record for consecutive games played in the NFL with 321 but as his career was winding down in Green Bay, he began hinting at retirement during each preseason. He then announced his retirement in the 2008 preseason, only to change his mind. Green Bay, however, had already moved on, and he instead played with the New York Jets.
Favre then played two seasons with the Minnesota Vikings before finally finishing his career with 71,858 passing yards and 508 touchdowns.
ESPN announced Thursday that the Rams contacted him about possibly replacing starting quarterback Sam Bradford, who's out for the year with a knee injury. USA TODAY Sports reported that NFL insiders speculated that Favre could make a comeback.
But Favre uncharacteristically slammed the door shut on that possibility, saying he doesn't want to think about how his concussions might affect his future.
"I think after 20 years, God only knows the toll," he said.
And it's not far-fetched to wonder whether the memory loss - or the effects of the concussion - affected his indecision about retirement toward the end of his career.
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