I thought, how much more interesting would it have been last season for the Cleveland Browns or Cincinnati Bengals if either had had him at quarterback? Would their fans still have had trouble giving away their worthless season tickets? Or even had wanted to give them away?

I'm guessing both teams would have finished with better records with Favre, and even the losing would have been a more fun.

Would Favre have been more entertaining than Derek Anderson? A toothache is more fun than Anderson, who acted as if he were being persecuted when the Browns started losing and questions arose over whether it was time to take a chance on backup Brady Quinn.

I expect that Anderson will be the choice of new coach Eric Mangini -- the same coach the Jets fired after failing to make the playoffs with Favre -- so there's no point in the Browns flirting with a 39-year-old who is having a hard time hanging up his Hall of Fame career.

But the question that won't go away just keeps nagging: Why is everybody so annoyed that Favre keeps changing his mind? What's so horrible about his unretirements? If the old warhorse/drama king changes his mind and decides he still wants to play, so what? Will the NFL be better when he's gone?

Several columnists and bloggers say Favre has damaged his credibility, that he has unretired so much, it's hard to believe him when he says "this is it."

Damaged his credibility with whom? The media? SportsCenter? Uninspiring young quarterbacks hoping to see the job market open up? Fine, but why should he care?

Favre is no different than most pro athletes who awaken one day and realize the sport that has consumed their lives since they were teenagers isn't going to be there for them. But there's one difference: Even at 39, Favre has a choice. Most athletes on the cusp of retirement discover there's no longer a market for them. And even if there's a team willing to invite them to camp, they know deep down they can't play.

Favre's situation is different. The NFL is a refuge for mediocre quarterbacks. It is teeming with young QBs who haven't met their promise and veteran plodders who can't win. Favre isn't the old Favre, but he also isn't Ryan Fitzpatrick, Dan Orlovsky or Marc Bulger. There's still a market for him, if he wants to test it.

Favre might have gone to the Jets for the wrong reasons. He has admitted harboring resentment when the Green Bay Packers cut ties with him after 16 seasons. But the Jets went into the deal with their eyes open, so if it ended badly, that's on them.

Favre thinks this retirement is for real, but that's also what he thought the last time. After a great start with the Jets, including six touchdown passes against Super Bowl-bound Arizona, he had an awful December, with just two touchdown passes against eight interceptions, Maybe in his mind, he finally is done.

But if he changes his mind and asks the Jets to trade him to another team desperate for victories, it's hard to see how that's bad for the NFL.

Maybe the next team will play in a domed stadium or in a warm-weather climate, where conditions are better suited to his infirmities. Maybe the next team will run the West Coast offense he directed like a maestro in Green Bay. Maybe he will even go somewhere where he is welcomed by all of his teammates, and he will reward them with unexpected success.

I'd pay to see that. I wouldn't have paid to see last year's Browns.

Bob Hunter is a sports columnist for The Dispatch.

bhunter@dispatch.com