Brett Favre has informed the Vikings that he will not return for another season in Minnesota, the Star Tribune reported Tuesday.
Favre has sent text messages to teammates saying, “This is it,” league sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.
Neither Favre nor the Vikings have confirmed the news but a press release is expected Tuesday, the sources said.
The Associated Press also reported that Favre is saying that he’s not returning this season.
The Vikings’ ownership is holding its annual meeting at training camp Tuesday morning.
This would be the third retirement for Favre, who also retired after 16 seasons with the Green Bay Packers after the 2007 season and one season with the New York Jets after the 2008 season.
The 40-year-old Favre has been working out at his home in Hattiesburg, Miss., still rehabbing a surgically repaired ankle that was injured in Minnesota’s overtime loss to the New Orleans Saints in the NFC title game. He has yet to inform the team if he will honor the second year of his contract and come back for another run at the Super Bowl.
With Favre, of course, nothing is ever necessarily final. Last year Favre told the Vikings he was not going to play shortly before camp opened. But he changed his mind a few weeks later, and went on to record one of the best seasons of his career despite having less than three weeks to prepare.
If Favre doesn’t return, the Vikings’ starting quarterback job likely will be decided in a training camp battle between Sage Rosenfels and Tarvaris Jackson.
The 32-year-old Rosenfels, acquired by the Vikings last year in a trade with the Houston Texans, has a career quarterback rating of 81.2. In 32 games, he has 30 touchdowns and 29 interceptions and has passed for 4,156 yards.
The 27-year-old Jackson, drafted in the second round of the 2006 draft, has a 77.9 rating and has 21 touchdowns and 18 interceptions, passing for 3,643 yards in 33 career games.
Favre threw for over 4,200 yards with 33 touchdowns and just seven interceptions to lead the Vikings (12-4) to the NFC North title and their first NFC title game since 2001.