Brett Favre's back! Retired QB hired by NFL Network to talk football

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FILE - In this July 30, 2012, file photo, former NFL quarterback Brett Favre, now an assistant football coach at Oak Grove High School in Hattiesburg, Miss., speaks about the transition from player to coach during the first day of official practice for the fall high school football season. The retired three-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback will join the NFL Network's crew for daylong coverage on Sunday for Super Bowl XLVII between the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers. AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

NEW ORLEANS - Brett Favre is returning to the NFL — to work for the NFL Network.

The retired three-time NFL MVP quarterback will join the network's crew for daylong coverage of Sunday's league championship game between the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers.

Favre hasn't been heard from much since retiring after the 2010 season. He returns to the city where he led the Green Bay Packers to a 35-21 win over New England in the 1997 Super Bowl.

"I don't miss the grind and stress of day-to-day football, but I do miss my teammates and coaches," Favre said in an email to The Associated Press.

He chose to appear on "NFL GameDay Morning" because he could work with friends such as Steve Mariucci, Deion Sanders and Warren Sapp, and because the game is in New Orleans.

"Players and coaches who I have great memories of, and to do it from the field where I won a Super Bowl was a tough combination to pass up," Favre said. "Between my appearance on NFL Network and my work with Virtual Fan Network, a new digital sports marketing company, it will be great to reconnect with NFL fans around the Super Bowl."

Favre will join host Rich Eisen and several Super Bowl-winning players, including Marshall Faulk, Kurt Warner and Sanders.

"There aren't too many retired athletes who continue to attract the attention and draw that Brett Favre does, and NFL Network is thrilled to have him," said Eric Weinberger, executive producer of NFL Network. "Brett should give our viewers some unique insight and analysis into the game and his life away from the field."

Favre left the NFL in 2010 after two aborted retirements. He starred for the Packers from 1992-2007, leading them to two Super Bowls. He played the 2008 season with the Jets, then was with Minnesota in 2009-10 — losing the '09 NFC title game at the Superdome to the Saints.

He spent much of 2012 playing fantasy football, finishing next to last in his league.

Asked if more announcing is ahead, Favre wasn't sure.

"I don't see it anytime soon but that interest may change in the future," he said. "I think being involved in the Super Bowl was too much to pass up."

Favre wasn't about to pick the Niners or Ravens to win. His work with San Francisco-based Virtual Fan Network has allowed him to see the 49ers more closely.

"I think both teams are good and very deserving of being in the Super Bowl," Favre said. "Both are very well coached and have great story lines. "I have probably followed the 49ers more closely, and the way Colin is playing makes me think they have the advantage.

"But I am not going to make a prediction."