NED YOST vs BRETT FAVRE: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF DEPARTURES

One man took the high road, wished his old team well, and appeared to mean every word of it.

The other publicly took the high road, talked about wanting them to do well, and proceeded to knife them in the back.

Kevin Hench of FOXSports.com makes the seemingly inconceivable comparison between Ned Yost and Brett Favre.

If Favre needs a road map from Wisconsin to that elusive high road he should take a look at the way Ned Yost handled his firing from the Brewers with 12 games to play despite being tied for the wild card.

"If anybody thinks that I've got sour grapes or I don't want this club to succeed, they're crazy," said Yost. "I'll be rooting them on every inch of the way and I hope they can win that wild card and go deep, deep into the playoffs and win the World Series."

Gee, you mean Yost didn't call up Phillies manager Charlie Manuel and give him the Brewers' signals?

Yost took his separation from the Brewers like a man. Favre has taken his separation from the Packers like a spiteful, petulant child.

Bingo.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Ever since FOX's Jay Glazer reported that Favre spilled the beans to the Detroit Lions in a lame attempt at sabotage, I've wrestled with a few feelings on the topic.

For starters, I'm fully cognizant of the fact that this doesn't breach any NFL rules. I'm not sure that alone means anything, but anyone suggesting a Brett Favre fine or suspension are off the mark.

In many ways, this is much more meaningful than a fine or suspension.

This is about image. Legacy. Perception among the classiest, most loyal fans in sports.

When Favre was traded, CBS stations in Wisconsin were inundated with calls from fans who wanted to see the Jets play. Most of them are carrying upwards of eight Jets games this season. Even though he left the Packers, the circumstances of his departure were less than ideal, and the Packers had their own season to play, fans still wanted to watch Brett Favre play for the Jets.

Perhaps Favre has miscalculated the fans' loyalty towards him.

They're not jumping ship in droves. They're still filling Lambeau Field. They're buying Aaron Rodgers jerseys. They're making signs about Aaron Rodgers. They're cheering for Aaron Rodgers. They're smacking his helmet when he does a Lambeau Leap.

Meanwhile, Favre is inexplicably trying to sabotage his former team.

And he's failing.

I mean, if you're going to give the dirt to the Lions, you'd think the Lions could at least stay within three touchdowns, right?

(There has been speculation that he may have also given tips to Seattle, coached by former Packers head coach Mike Holmgren, and Minnesota (duh). So I'll just mention here that the Packers won those games, too. Maybe Favre kinda sucks at this "giving out secrets" thing. Or maybe Mike McCarthy smelled out the plot and changed the questions that Favre was answering.)

Meanwhile, the Brewers lost to the Phillies in the National League Division Series, but it wasn't because of espionage or dirty tactics by Yost. Instead, it was because they weren't good enough.

In reality, that's the reason Yost was fired, even though he didn't help himself by being uptight with the players and media, and not understanding that the media is a vehicle to communicate with the people who actually buy tickets to watch your team play.

Maybe it's killing Favre that we're almost halfway through the season, and Rodgers has better numbers.

Or maybe he's just an immature jerk who can't stand that fact that Ted Thompson is running the show in Green Bay.