Here at mid-afternoon Friday, speculation around the NFL is high on the future home of Brett Favre.
Adam Schefter of NFL.com is reporting that Favre plans to report to Green Bay for training camp, which seems to start the wheel turning on where to trade him. Schefter implies that Green Bay is giving some consideration to keeping Favre on the roster, and although that seems unlikely at this point it’s at least a possibility.

Keeping Favre around as a backup at $12 million wouldn’t work. Every time the Pack had to punt, fans would be screaming for him to replace Aaron Rodgers. So no, let’s say this: He’s not staying in Green Bay.

So where does he go?

ESPN.com says the Jets have permission to talk with Favre and seem to imply it’s between the Jets and the Bucs. The Daily News in New York had this follow-up. The Bucs aren’t saying much of anything.

Jason Cole of Yahoo! sports reports that this whole thing could actually take a little while longer than anybody thought. Most everyone assumed it would be done (or not done) by this weekend, when camps open around the league. But maybe not.

It seems logical that Green Bay is leaking at least some of these stories, hoping to drive up the price for their soon-to-be-ex quarterback. Once New York (J-E-T-S JETS! JETS! JETS!) gets involved, that could start an inferno. The Bucs still have quite a few pieces to use in any potential bidding war (not to mention a lot of room under the salary cap to absorb his contract) but would they want to do that? At what point does it become prudent to say, “Hey, we have a quarterback” and pin all this on idle speculation by the godless, heathen media.

Stay tuned.

YANKS COME TO SENSES QUICKLY: Apparently the Yankees dismissed the Barry-Bonds-In-Pinstripes story about as quickly as it began. The Daily News is now saying the Yankees have backed away from the notion of adding Bonds for a stretch run.

Good thing.

You start thinking about what the Yankees say they stand for. Then you start thinking about Bonds.

No doubt the Yankees did “discuss” Bonds - just as the Rays “discussed” Bonds (and every other available player) in the spring - but as long as it doesn’t go farther than that, no harm and no foul.