"You smeared yourself" - Stephen A. Smith blasts Brett Favre to take ownership of his mistakes and stop dissing the media

Brett Favre's legacy has taken a major blow this year, given his involvement in a welfare fraud scandal in his home state of Mississippi. The former Green Bay Packers star recently defended himself, stating that the media has smeared him and his name.

On ESPN's 'First Take,' analyst Stephen A. Smith was hearing none of that. Smith reacted to the quarterback's comments, saying:

"Then, there are text messages with Brett Favre or from Brett's phone or whatever ... it is okay ... eith him saying, without anybody finding out about it? What, excuse me, find out about what if you're trying to raise funds to help a public university? What are you concerned about people finding out anything about for? What are you concerned about that for?"

Smith added that the Hall of Famer smeared himself due to his role in the welfare scandal:

"You smeared yourself at the very least by getting involved with the wrong people and doing business with the wrong people."

"As the particulars continue to come out, and we continue to learn even more about what transpired, we can revisit this compensation, but I'll be damned if the media is at fault for reporting on the fact that people that you were involved in doing business with, particularly as it pertained to your university and a volleyball team and a volleyball court where your daughter played."

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Brett Favre comes to his own defense

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The quarterback spoke to Fox News Digital about his role, or lack thereof, in the welfare fraud scandal, claiming he was trying to help his alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi, raise funds for athletic facilities:

"No one ever told me, and I did not know, that funds designated for welfare recipients were going to the university or me. I tried to help my alma mater USM [University of Southern Mississippi], a public Mississippi state university, raise funds for a wellness center. My goal was and always will be to improve the athletic facilities at my university."

Per a Mississippi state audit, $77 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds were rerouted from the poorest people in the state. Six individuals have been arrested in the case, five of whom have pled guilty to state charges. The former Packers quarterback has not been criminally charged but is a defendant in a civil lawsuit filed by the state.

Southern Mississippi received $5 million in TANF money, shifted from the Department of Human Services to a nonprofit and, in time, to the university's Athletic Foundation. A volleyball facility was subsequently constructed on campus. Text messages revealed Favre pressed for funding for a volleyball facility while his daughter was a player on the team.

Now, many NFL fans want Favre to be ousted from the Pro Football Hall of Fame, sent to prison, or even both. One thing is for certain: this will not go away anytime soon as Favre has been sacked by sponsors and jobs over the scandal.

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