Packers Trade Headache for Draft Pick

I kind of hate to do this because what can I say that hasn't been said a thousand times over? But PSB is overdue for a post anyway. So, here goes:

Brett Favre was traded to the Jets yesterday, ending his career in Green Bay, but not in the way many expected. After announcing his retirement in a teary press conference, Favre has since decided to return to the NFL. The Packers, to their credit, said enough is enough and refused to let him run their franchise any longer, trading him to the New York Jets for a conditional draft pick.

It's a good deal for the Packers, who no longer have the Favre saga to deal with and can concentrate on developing Aaron Rodgers (finally). The value of the draft pick is based on how much Favre plays and how well the Jets perform. The Packers, at worst, receive a fourth-round pick. If Favre takes 50% of the Jets' snaps this season (which is virtually guaranteed), it becomes a third round pick. A playoff berth and 70% nets Green Bay and second round pick, while a Super Bowl appearance (keep dreaming Jets fans) and 80% makes it a first rounder.

This makes perfect sense for the Packers, who get pretty good value for Favre and did so without trading him to a division rival, but what is the motivation for the Jets to make this deal? Favre is an obvious upgrade over Chad Pennington and Kellen Clemens, but how good does this really make the Jets? Are they a Super Bowl contender now? Hardly. Their offense should be formidable with Favre and Thomas Jones, but the receiving corps isn't exactly stellar.

Maybe Favre can turn a young Jets receiver into the next Greg Jennings, but will it even matter? The Jets were 4-12 last year. Let's say Favre is worth 6 wins, which is optimistic, especially considering he doesn't know Eric Mangini's system and the Jets don't know the West Coast offense. That puts the Jets at 10-6. With that record, the division is out of the question since the Patriots will almost certainly win 12+ games.

Last year Pittsburgh and Cleveland posted 10-6 records in the AFC and that put just the Steelers in the playoffs with the six seed. Pittsburgh was ousted in the first game, falling to Jacksonville. So this trade, at best, puts the Jets in the playoffs and sends them home after one game. Is that really worth it?

Maybe it is, as the Jets will draw some attention away from the Giants now and ought to make a killing on Favre jerseys. If the goal is for this to be a publicity stunt and generated a little excitement, then mission accomplished. But if the goal is to build a championship team, the Jets have accomplished very little.