Brett Lorenzo Favre ( ) (born October 10, 1969) is an American football quarterback for the New York Jets of the National Football League. He was the starting quarterback for the Green Bay Packers from 1992 to 2007. Favre started at the quarterback position for The University of Southern Mississippi for four years before being selected in the second round of the 1991 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons (33rd overall). After one season with the Falcons, Favre was traded to the Green Bay Packers on February 10, 1992 for the 19th pick in the 1992 NFL Draft. He became the Packers' starting quarterback in the fourth game of the 1992 NFL season, starting every game from then on until his retirement in 2008. In 2008, Favre came out of retirement and was traded to the New York Jets.

Favre is the only three–time AP MVP (1995–97) in NFL history and led the Packers to seven division championships (1995, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2007), four NFC Championship Games (1995, 1996, 1997, and 2007), two NFC Championships (1996 and 1997), and one Super Bowl championship (XXXI). His NFL records include: most career touchdown passes (454), most career passing yards (62,590), most career pass completions (5,464), most career pass attempts (8,882), most career interceptions thrown (292), most consecutive starts among NFL quarterbacks (257; 279 total starts including playoffs), and most career victories as a starting quarterback (162).

Early years

Favre was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, and raised in the small town of Kiln. He is of French and Choctaw ancestry; one of his paternal grandparents was a Native American affiliated with the Choctaw. He was the second of four children and attended Hancock North Central High School where he played baseball and football. Favre started for the Hancock North Central baseball team as an eighth–grader and earned five varsity letters. He played quarterback, lineman, strong safety, placekicker and punter in a primarily option, run-oriented offense coached by his father, Irvin Favre.

Irvin Favre said he knew his son had a great arm but also knew that the school was blessed with good running backs. As a result, in the three years Brett was on the team, his father ran a run-oriented offense called the wishbone. Favre rarely threw more than five passes in a game.

College career

After high school, Southern Mississippi offered Favre a scholarship (the only one he received). Southern Miss wanted him to play defensive back but Favre wanted to play quarterback instead. Favre began his freshman year as the seventh–string quarterback and took over the starting position in the second half of the third game of the year against Tulane on September 19, 1987. Favre, despite suffering a hangover from the night before and vomiting during warm-ups, led the Golden Eagles to a come-from-behind victory with two touchdown passes.