Four Stages of Fan Frustration Brett Favre is getting on my last nerve. I am a Green Bay fan and have been since before birth. Favre, one of our greatest players, is again acting strangely, which brings my Packer-hating “friends” great satisfaction. I have run out of ways to explain his actions. I am officially a Frustrated Fan.

There are four stages of Fan Frustration:

1. Denial. This is the stage where you hear the news on sports talk and you know you have not heard it right. No way, Brett announced his retirement already. He cried real tears. He can’t be thinking of coming back. And he can’t possibly play for another team.

2. Anger. This is the stage where diehard fans begin to criticize what was once their hero. You’ll see the humorous signs at the stadium, read some great blogs, and notice that the callers on talk radio have turned against Brett. You fight this anger because it goes against the loyalty you had to the player. Then you find yourself wearing a t-shirt that says, “We’ll Never Forget You, Bert”

3. Bargaining. The bargaining stage is when former fans now say things like, “If only Brett had been treated better here at Green Bay… Well, okay, he can play for the Jets, just not any of our rivals…I sure hope that someone gives him a job outside of quarterbacking so he can move on with his life…Maybe Donald Trump can hire him for Celebrity Apprentice.”

4. Acceptance. You pop a beer and say, “To hell with it. Bring on the Vikings!”