Four teams, three retirements, two meetings in each of the last two seasons and one Super Bowl victory later, Packer fans can be heard all around the globe asking, “Brett Favre who”? If you listen even closer, one of those guys is Super Bowl XLV MVP, Aaron Rodgers.

After the conclusion of this year’s Super Bowl, I began to wonder if this was the moment Packer fans could use to move on from all the Favre drama. Was that performance by Favre, now one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, worthy of forgiveness? Who needs “4” when you can have “12”?

One of the “prop bets” in Vegas for this year’s game was how many times the announcers, Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, would utter the name “Brett Favre” during the telecast. To my amazement, the answer was zero. After the game was completed, you heard the occasional, “Aaron can now live up to Aaron’s standards, not Brett’s.”

What I love about the Super Bowl are the stories and memories that are formed in front of our eyes. Think back to previous Super Bowls. Super Bowl XLI was the year Peyton Manning got the monkey off his back as the best quarterback to never win a ring. The following year was the one where the younger Manning equaled big brother in rings, and more notably, a great catch by David Tyree ended New England’s pursuit of perfection. Super Bowl XLIII was the year of one of the greatest catches in Super Bowl history, made by former Buckeye, Santonio Holmes to defeat the Cardinals, 27-23. Last year’s Saints win was the end of turmoil in New Orleans and the beginning of a year-long celebration on Bourbon Street.

So what is this year’s lasting memory? If you think it’s the return of the Vince Lombardi trophy to Green Bay, that’s fine; great story, great return of a trophy to its home. Hell, it’s Vince’s anyway right? But in my mind, it was Rodgers allowing Green Bay to move on the same way Drew Brees allowed New Orleans to move on last season. Green Bay needed this win, needed this jubilation. Having Favre’s lingering stink in Green Bay was like the smelly kid’s socks from seventh grade gym class. Even though he’s now graduated high school, the socks still wreak havoc. Sorry if those socks were mine, Mr. Kelly.

I also wonder what Favre was thinking after he saw “his” Packers win without him. Was he happy for the organization that helped him become a legend? Was he upset he wasn’t there to celebrate with long-time teammates Donald Driver and Chad Clifton? And please God tell me he wasn’t thinking of a comeback to show up Green Bay. Please Brett, hang those stinky cleats up.

Another season of football has come and gone, and honestly, who knows when it will come back. But I’ll end the football season on this note: the Browns are now tied for first in the AFC North and how ‘bout those record-setting Cavs?