Should Favre Case Lead To Extortion?

The Minnesota Vikings are in town this weekend and it seems that wherever Brett Favre goes these days a circus follows.  There will be assorted boos as he takes center stage tonight at Lambeau Field for the Vikings but regardless of whether Favre is a Viking or simply, now, an ex-Packer, one thing is for sure, his game play on the field is starting to become the side show to his issues off the field.

Two weeks ago it was reported that there were cell phone pictures of Favre sent to NY Jets sideline reporter Jenn Sterger as well as some issues with a few Jets hired masseuse’s.  This all dates back to the lone year that Favre was in NY.  Apparently, in the two years since the pictures and “harassment” took place, no one really seemed to care.  Until the Vikings and Brett Favre headed to NY for the first time since his leaving.  Then, a mere days prior to that Monday night event, both the images and the story break and the focus of what should have been Brett Favre against a former team, turned into Brett Favre the not-so-squeaky clean Hall of Fame QB.  The irony of it all.

Let’s forget about the fact that Sterger or whomever purportedly layed hands on the photos or how they got them, the real issue now appears to lie in the story of Sterger and what could be, and should, be considered a form extortion.

It is being reported that Jenn Sterger is refusing to cooperate with the NFL’s investigation provided that Favre “financially” meets her requirements.  Seriously?  At the very core of this is extortion.  And with this revelation, the timing of the revelations should also be brought into focus and perhaps even an investigation into whether the Jets themselves had any part in it.

The fact that Sterger is requesting a monetary payout for her silence is sickening.  Regardless of what Favre did or didn’t do this is something that should perhaps go deeper than a simple NFL investigation into what it is terming, “workplace mis-conduct“.  Either way, it reeks of bull centered around a woman who has made a career of being a little less than a lady.

This by no means, my opinion on this that is, excuse Brett Favre or any other party to this kind of behavior.  Would it not seem as though the statue of limitations on this would have gone out the window a year ago?  So why now?  Why publicly?  And why would she simply not allow the NFL to interview her over a firestorm that she still denies came out of her camp?  Of course the question would be then, who did she give the cell phone pictures to that would have passed them along to the media?

I supported 100 percent the Erin Andrews incident.  It still disgusts me.  Woman in the media, In my opinion should have the same rights as men but I do feel that by not allowing any press into a locker room until teams or individuals are clothed should be a mandate across all sports.  The comments made recently by members of the Jets to a Latin female reporter were crass as well.  Still, that does not excuse woman who decide to already take a delicate situation and make it worse by their dress.

In Sterger’s case, it’s always been about the dress.  Sterger was an internet sensation for collegiate look-ups due to her Florida State college football game attire as a fan.  It didn’t change when she went to work for NY.

All of that aside, Brett Favre still needs to come into Green Bay and beat a team that is reeling from it’s own demons and the sidebar issues of Jenn Sterger and the folks at Deadspin.com who broke the news will be nothing more than talk in the broadcast booth.