Peter King: Vikings Want Brett Favre Decision by Weekend

Peter King has been largely silent all throughout the Brett Favre drama, but in his new Monday Morning Quarterback column, the well-connected Favre-buddy at last offers some possibly-worthwhile reporting/speculation:

"This is what I know about the odd little mating dance between Favre and the Vikings as of this weekend:• He’s going to have a make a decision whether to join the Vikings very soon, probably by this weekend, because the Vikings want to know what their 2009 future is at quarterback. I’m told the organization won’t wait for a decision much longer, and if he has to get a minor operation to snip the damaged right biceps tendon that has been giving him pain, he has to do it soon. Like, within a week.I get the strong sense that if the Vikings are going to do any deal with Favre that coach Brad Childress wants to be assured that Favre will report to training camp in game shape, with no restrictions on throwing or his condition. They’d also like Favre to be involved in the mental part of team activities before camp. He has missed the first week of Organized Team Activities (last week), and he’s all but out of this weekend’s final mandatory full-squad mini-camp before training camp. Ten OTA practices remain for the Vikings — June 2-5, June 8-11 and June 15-16.• Favre needs surgery to release the biceps tendon that has been giving him discomfort throwing the ball. I’m told the tendon is hanging on by a thread. One source in the NFL medical establishment told me last week that he understands Favre’s tendon is barely attached, and would take a minor arthroscopic procedure to disattach it by snipping the tendon. If that happened, Favre would likely be unable to throw the ball for at least two weeks, with a month’s rehab before he could throw like the old Favre.I was also told that severing the tendon would have no impact on Favre’s velocity or accuracy. Theoretically, if Dr. James Andrews, who appears to be Favre’s orthopedist of choice — and who is a big fan of Favre’s — does the surgery by the end of the week, Favre would be back throwing by the end of June, which would give him about a month to get his arm in NFL shape.• Will he or won’t he? I don’t know. My best guess is he’ll have the minor surgery if the tendon is still nagging him by week’s end, and that he’ll get his arm right and do a deal with the Vikings. But it’s only a guess. As I’ve said through this whole thing, I’ve been wrong about Favre staying retired twice, and so I’m out of the Favre prediction business. Let’s see what this week brings. We ought to have a better idea by the weekend."

My prediction:  the weekend will come and go and there will still be no resolution to the Favre matter.  I said I thought Favre would wait as long as possible to make a decision and I stand by that.  You think Chilly and the Vikes are really going to take a hard line with Favre and demand he show up to some silly OTAs?  If they really want Favre, they’ll wait for him.  They’ll wait until ten minutes before the start of the first game if they have to.  Favre has been dictating this all along, and will continue doing so.  Remember what happened when the Packers tried to push him into doing stuff he didn’t want to do.  How’d that work out?