In what should come as no major surprise to anyone that has followed the NFL or Brett Favre the past couple of seasons, the 40 year old quarterback dodged the question about whether he'd be back for another season at the helm of the Minnesota Vikings offense.

Favre told Jay Leno last night that he "wasn't going to decide or say anything soon" and that he was just going to "sit back, relax, and enjoy the off season." 

Favre and the Vikings had their season end in the NFC Championship Game when the Saints beat them in overtime on a Garrett Hartley field goal.  In that game, the Vikings turned the ball over twice in the red zone and suffered a Favre interception in the closing minutes with Minnesota moving into field goal range.  He posted the lowest interception rate of his career, tossing 33 touchdown passes against just seven picks with a quarterback rating of 107.2, by far the highest he has had in years. 

Now, let's be honest.  Favre has retired more times than George Foreman at this point.  He has nothing left to prove.  He's won everything there is to win:  Super Bowl, MVP, Offensive Player of the Year, Pro Bowl selections.  He could easily go buy an Advance Auto Parts store in Kiln, Mississippi and sell Mopar performance parts to farmers and other random people that happen to stop by.   He's 40 years old, and has been battered left, right and center.  He took a hellacious beating at the hands of the Saints in the NFC title game.

Favre retired after the 2007 season with Green Bay and decided to come back.  He was dealt to the Jets and after a hot start, he wilted late as the Jets missed the postseason.  He then promptly re-retired, only to come out of retirement last season in August to play for the Vikings.  That decision earned him the wrath of what once were loyal Favre fans in Green Bay.  Having the Packers suffer a pair of losses to the Favre led Vikes last season didn't help their emotional status much. 

I've said this before, and I'll say it again to Favre:  it's time to hang the cleats up.  There's no reason to continue to subject your body to a countless number of shots that are unnecessary at this point.  Money is not an issue.  Neither is holding records, as he holds a lot of them.  He has a Super Bowl ring.  There's no reason left to play, other than for the love of the game...but is that love of the game more important than being able to function in his later years?

Think about it long and hard Brett...and this time, decide that it's time to put an end to a storied career.  Go out on your own terms instead of having them dictated by someone else.