Vikings defensive end Jared Allen says Brett Favre politely declined an invitation to Allen’s recent wedding. But Allen assumes that no news from Favre means he’s coming back this year.
“If I was a betting man, and I had to put money on it today, absolutely,” Allen said on ESPN Radio in Chicago. “I hope if the answer was no, he would have already had the wherewithal to tell us that he’s not coming back so we could have done something in free agency.”
Saying the Vikings would have done something in free agency if they didn’t expect Favre back isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of Tarvaris Jackson, but Allen said he expects Favre to make it a moot point in a couple months.
“But again, the man’s earned the right to do what he pleases,” Allen said. “He hasn’t let anybody down yet, so I’m not here to start harping on it yet.”
Interestingly, although Allen can forgive Favre skipping training camp, he said he’d be annoyed if he were a teammate of Redskins defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, who’s skipping the team’s minicamp.
“If I’m a teammate like that, I’m probably pretty [ticked], because that’s a pretty lucrative contract,” Allen said. “I’m all for everybody getting the most money they can get, and getting paid, because our career is brutal and doesn’t last very long. But I’m also a man of my word and integrity. When I sign a contract, I’m going to show up and I’m going to play it out.”
Favre will show up and play, too. Just not on the schedule that the rest of the team has to adhere to.