I always wonder when I hear somebody say "it's safe to say."

When you hear "it's safe to say that most people think Brooklyn Decker looks better in that bikini than Rosie O'Donnell" you are all right. But if you hear somebody say "it's safe to say that most people in the Tea Party are also in Mensa" you have to pause a little bit. There is some doubt.

The point of all this is that I've heard more than a few people say that they think it's safe to say that most Packers fans have gotten over Brett Favre and that they are hoping for him to fail. You hear it a lot in bars during football games.

There are a couple of things wrong here. Number one is don't ever trust information you get from a bunch of people who have been belly up to the bar for a football game. Many of these people also think one more cocktail will make them invisible.

I don't think most fans will be watching to see Favre fail this season. I think there is a small group of vocal ingrates who think it's cool or something to disrespect Favre.

Plus, I think most of those people are in Wisconsin.

I'd be willing to bet a lot that most NFL fans in other cities still love Favre and wish him nothing but the best. This was a guy whose jersey sales were an overwhelming No. 1 just a couple of years ago. He was the public face of the entire league.

About those who hate Favre I've got to wonder what he ever did to us Packers fans? He gave us almost two decades of thrills. He played every game, every down. He was dedicated to us and we shared a cause. So what if he left? The Packers didn't want him anymore. And he wanted to move on. Neither side covered themselves with glory. Okay, I get it.

But there are reasons that Favre was the most popular player in the league. He played, and still does, with a joyous enthusiasm. His errors make him seem almost more human. He'd get knocked around and then throw a bullet into the middle of the field for a touchdown.

Now we are hearing all this talk that the secret to beating Favre is out. Just hit him, the logic goes, and you'll clip his wings.

Well, I once was talking with a pretty fair quarterback named Bart Starr about the value of pressuring the quarterback. Starr said it was best to hit quarterbacks who had a little fear inside them. That, Starr said, disrupted a game plan.

Hitting a quarterback, Starr added, who had courage, only worked for one play. "The brave ones get up, dust themselves of, and call another play as if nothing had happened," Starr said.

I think most people, at least those who really appreciate professional football for the great game played by great athletes that it is, still appreciate Favre. Both for what he's done in the past and what he's doing now.

I'm pretty sure it's safe to say that, too.