It now appears that former Jets' QB Brett Favre was advised to continue to play by the Jets despite a torn biceps in his throwing shoulder last season. Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum confirmed this morning that the team knew about Favre's condition and did not put him on the injury report, which is a clear violation of the league rules. In the past, teams have been fined anywhere between $10K to $25K for not reporting all injuries, but the amount of the fine depends on the violation, and could exceed that range. No team has ever lost a draft pick for violating the injury report guidelines.
Tannenbaum said that "We made a decision together that (Favre) gave us the best chance to win. That's how we made the decision going down the stretch. ... We talked about it. (former QB coach) Brian Dabol, (offensive coordinator) Brian Schottenheimer, (former head coach) Eric Mangini and myself." On the contrary, former head coach Eric Mangini, who is now with the Browns, said that he abided by NFL rules last season and followed league guidelines when filling out the weekly injury reports.
Favre threw 9 interceptions and only 2 touchdowns in the final five games of last season and the Jets finished 1-4 and out of the playoffs after an 8-3 start. This whole situation is a clear indication that the organization doesn't have much faith in QB Kellen Clemens, whom they obviously ranked lower than injured Favre. Clemens lost the competition for the starting job to rookie QB Mark Sanchez in this year's training camp and might as well be looking for another team next year.