Brett Favre's Sad Fall From Grace
Brett Favre is one of the most iconic quarterbacks in NFL history. He spent 20 seasons in the league, and his 16-year stretch playing for the Green Bay Packers was one of the most legendary QB runs in the game. As a three-time MVP player and one-time Super Bowl winner, Favre's legacy as one of the best to ever play was cemented. However, the Hall of Famer's reputation took a major hit, not because of his failings on the football field, but rather because of his alleged involvement in a scheme that defrauded the Mississippi state government.
If those allegations come as a surprise, don't worry, as Favre's connection to the misappropriation of federal welfare funding isn't obvious unless you've kept up with the former quarterback's post-NFL life. Favre, a Mississippi native who earned his college ball stripes at the University of Southern Mississippi, initially became entangled in the scandal in the summer of 2017 when he began asking Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant to bankroll a new volleyball facility for Southern Miss.
Favre became further involved through appearance fee payments that allegedly came from state welfare funds, and he was also involved in a request for state funds to be directed toward an indoor football facility for USM. Favre denied any knowledge of wrongdoing when the scandal broke, but further investigation has led to some obvious connections between the former footballer and the misappropriation of funds.
Favre was paid with Mississippi state welfare funds
Brett Favre had shown his shady side before this particular scandal broke, but there's a difference between bad publicity and potential legal or even criminal liability. Unfortunately, the Mississippi state welfare scandal goes far beyond Brett Favre. As reported by the United States House Committee on Ways & Means, approximately $77 million of funding for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families was misspent in Mississippi from 2017 to 2020, according to testimony from Mississippi's state auditor.
The FBI questioned Brett Favre regarding his part in the scheme, as the state of Mississippi paid Favre $1.1 million in appearance fees in 2017 and 2018 for appearances that were never actually made. As reported by the Associated Press, Favre repaid the state $500,000 in May 2020 and $600,000 in October 2021, but Mississippi state auditor Shad White claimed that Favre owed the state another $729,790 in interest on those original payments.
The conflict between Favre and White has only grown since then, as the Mississippi Free Press reported that Favre filed a defamation suit against White. In his court filings, Favre stated "White has made egregiously false and defamatory statements accusing Favre of"steal[ing] taxpayer funds" and knowingly misusing funds." Favre also filed defamation suits against sportscasters Pat McAfee and Shannon Sharpe for their discussions of the incident on the show "Skip and Shannon: Undisputed." However, Favre is still pretty far from getting off the hook for this crisis.
Favre denied involvement, but the blowback has been major
Brett Favre has ardently denied any culpability in the Mississippi welfare scandal, but texts published by Mississippi Today muddied the waters regarding Favre's understanding of from where the money was actually coming. Regardless of his proclaimed innocence, the fact that his name has been brought into such a massive conspiracy to defraud the government has undeniably hurt Favre's bottom line.
Favre was a significant investor in a drug company called Prevacus, which is now known as Odyssey Health. The company allegedly received $2.15 million from the misused federal funding pool and offered Governor Bryant "a company package for all [his] help." In an interview with Mississippi Today, Bryant said that he turned down the proposal, but the issue seems to have affected Favre's position in the company, as the retired quarterback is no longer listed on Odyssey Health's sports advisory board. Similarly, Favre was seemingly ditched by Hallow, a Catholic prayer app that teamed up with the football player in 2018. While no public statement was made, the company seemingly cut ties with Favre in 2022, as their public promotions came to an abrupt end.
It's not too late for the athlete to make a comeback, although Favre's history with comebacks hasn't been the greatest. Although Brett Favre's world has been rocked by scandal before, his connections to the Mississippi fraud case might just be the biggest stain on his resume.