I think it's a lose – lose – lose.  "Brett Favre Signs with Vikings" was the ESPN.com headline.  I wasn't going to bring this up, but in 2 days I've had 8 requests, so I guess people are more interested in Mr. Favre at the start  of this American NFL season than I imagined.  The situation is simply dripping with Defend & Extend behavior, and an inability to focus on the future.  And it's hard t see how anybody wins.

The first loss goes to the Minnesota Vikings.  Every team is built by growing a powerful squad.  By hiring "yesterday's hero" the Vikings have admitted they are not looking to the future.  The coaches are trying to somehow capture yesterday.  Were they concerned the team would repeat last year's Detroit fiasco and lose every game?  Because if they weren't why sacrifice the team's future by hiring an on-field leader that everyone knows is unable to play much longer?  This isn't a lot different than GM putting Mr. Bob Lutz, at age 77, in charge of marketing.  What was a great past does not make for a great future.

The young people in Minneapolis want to see their home-town team be Super Bowl champs in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and onward.  With someone age 39 in the job, slower than ever, it is certain that the team is not "building" toward a potential legacy like teams have had in Green Bay and Dallas.  Sixteen year old attendees weren't even alive when Mr. Favre started his football career.  They want to see people in the jobs who can help their team become a dynasty – and that's not Mr. Favre.  Minnesotans, especially young ones, have to question coaches and owners that would hire someone who, at best, is good (impossible to be great) for a year or two.  It rings of defeatism, of desperation, to take this action.

Mr. Favre himself loses with this move by denying his own ability to grow.  Americans have great respect for sports heroes that prove themselves after playing ball.  Look at those who are revered for not only their play, but their after-play prowess

• Troy Aikmen won Super Bowls at Dallas, then never skipped a beat becoming a respected and popular sports announcer
• Roger Staubach won Super Bowls also at Dallas, but worked summers learning real estate then built his own multi-million dollar real estate development empire
• Jack Kemp played football for the Buffalo Bills, then went on to be a successful Congressman and even was a Vice Presidential candidate with Bob Dole
• Bill Bradley played basketball for championship winning New York Knicks, then became a 3 term senator from New Jersey
• Roger Penske was a world winning race car driver, but is even better known today for building the largest auto dealership company in North America, one of the largest truck leasing companies and recently bidding to purchase Saturn from GM.

By returning to football, Mr. Favre demonstrates he is so Locked-in to playing ball that he isn't looking forward for himself.  He can't play football forever, so what will he do next?  He has enough money to retire, but there's not much personal growth in retirement.  Life is about growth, and at age 39 Mr. Favre has a lot of time to grow into new and even more powerful roles.  But he can't if he keeps going back and playing football.  It's not a good thing that Mr. Favre isn't growing into other roles where he can be a significant contributor.

The third loser is Wrangler jeans, a division of VF Corporation.  "Favre Should Add Bang to Wrangler Effort" is the MediaPost.com headline.  Mr. Favre recently agreed to be advertising spokesperson for Wrangler, and the initial view is that his return to football will sell more jeans.  To whom?  Forty-ish men who dream of a sports career?  Cast as an outdoorsman, or new businessman, with a proud legacy Mr. Favre has appeal to a wide group of buyers.  But as an aged football player he represents all the people who are questioned as "over the hill." 

Mr. Favre could be a role model for younger people as a retired football player.  But as an active one he has limited appeal to younger people who are more attuned to Phil Rivers or Tony Romo.  Young people don't desire to be the oldest quarterback in the NFL.  By Mr. Favre playing football, Wrangler de facto gets positioned as the "jeans for old guys."  Mr. Favre could have been a powerful young sports hero starting a new career – a much more favorable position for Wrangler.

When we slip into Defend & Extend thinking nobody wins.  Success comes from focusing on the future, and taking the actions that will beat your competitors.  Reaching into the past does not bode well for anybody looking to beat the competition, because the competition knows all those old moves.  Everyone involved would have been better off if Minnesota had Disrupted its plans by bringing in a quarterback with a sizzling chance to be THE NEXT Brett Favre, rather than Mr. Favre himself.  And then building a program that would position them as the next dynasty, not one trying to protect its Defend its current season by Extending the career of somone who's already twice retired.  And Wrangler should have thought about this in advance, with a clause in Mr. Favre's contract not allowing him to play football any more if he wants to continue representing their brand.