On March 4th 2008, an NFL warrior called a press conference, and made his retirement known. QB Brett Favre spent 16 years with the Green Bay Packers winning 1 Super Bowl title, received 3 MVP Awards, was selected to the Pro-Bowl nine times, and has broken all types of NFL records during his long career, but to some this announcement of sudden retirement was a surprise to many from teammates, coaches and media. One reason why is because Brett had never mentioned he truly wanted to retire. In the past two years he always said he was on the fence, but he loved the game so much, and that was what always brought him back. This past season, just before the Seattle Seahawks playoff game the question was posed to Brett again, and the answer was directed more towards him returning, and that he had his daughters also wanting him to return next season. So why the change of heart? Why the sudden change of interest from a man some would say symbolizes the "Iron Man" of the NFL?

I'd like to answer that, without taking anything away from his past accomplishments, and say that this decision (along with certain others) to retire may have something to do with another aging player who remained in the game, and turned his later career into success, and that player would be Roger Clemens. Right now MLB pitcher Roger Clemens is fighting for his "life" against the Feds, and all that he's accomplished may be flushed down the toilet if he ends up going to jail for perjury in his scandal with the use of HGH and steroids. So how does Brett figure into this?

Brett is 38 years old, and last season he had one of his best, putting up better performances than some of his younger counterparts. Some would say it's due to his veteran status, but the fact of the matter is that Brett remained in the game as a QB well past the league's QB career expectancy, and was able to run with the young boys, and why? In my opinion I would have to say HGH.

So what is HGH, and why would guys like Brett Favre, or Rodney Harrison take something like this? HGH stands for Human Growth Hormone, and is used to help older players by boosting their immune systems (less likely to get sick), strengthens bones with calcium retention (lessens the a chance to have a bone broken & quickens bone healing),  and increases muscle mass. One of the things it has been known to help older players cope with is dealing with the rigors of the season. In any sport, the body goes through a gauntlet of wear and tear, and for the older guys it's harder for them to get back on track after game day, and HGH helped some of these guys through this.

At this time the NFL tests for steroids (since 1995), but they don't have a test for HGH, but after the February meetings this off-season NFLPA's Union Head Gene Upshaw announced that HGH testing was coming in the form of a urine test, and it wasn't known if it was going to be implemented by next season. Regardless of the fact when; the buzz was created, and older players who were using or tried even once are probably looking in the mirror, and this is where I think Brett may have made his decision, because it's a smart move on his part, and I'm sure he's a business minded person watching what Roger Clemens is going through. At this time Roger Clemens' career is tainted, his Hall of Fame chances are at risk, he could be headed to jail, and he's losing millions of dollars in possible ad/endorsement money. Brett is involved in a lot of charity/social projects, a shoe-in for the NFL Hall of Fame, and as a retired player he is due to land tons of endorsements, and advertising money; something that would be of risk if he continued to stay in the game, and take his chances with HGH testing on the horizon.