Brett Favre isn’t taking a major loss against Shannon Sharpe into the night. The NFL Hall of Fame quarterback is appealing a judge’s decision to dismiss his defamation suit against the legendary Denver Broncos tight end.
Favre has been embroiled in a major scandal in Mississippi that alleges he played a role in funneling money meant for the state’s poorest families to vanity athletic projects on the campus of Southern Miss, Favre’s alma mater.
Favre’s dispute started with Sharpe when the then-FS1 host said live on air, “Favre stole that money from people that really needed it.”
A judge disagreed with that notion and threw the suit out last month.
“No reasonable person listening to the broadcast would think that Favre actually went into the homes of poor people and took their money — that he committed the crime of theft/larceny against any particular poor person in Mississippi,” the judge wrote in the order dismissing the case. “Sharpe’s comments were made against the backdrop of longstanding media coverage of Favre’s role in the welfare scandal and the state’s lawsuit against Favre. Listeners would have recognized Sharpe’s statements as rhetorical hyperbole.”
Only time will tell if Favre’s effort to get back to the court will be successful. The odds are certainly against him though.
