Brett Favre's Packers No. 4 to be retired by 2016

Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy said that former Green Bay star Brett Favre "deserves to have his number retired."

Murphy's comments come after Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said in May that it was time to put away Favre's No. 4.

"I thought Aaron Rodgers and Brett jointly presenting the Comeback Player of the Year Award at the NFL Honors program was a great first step [to add Favre back to the Packers family]," Murphy said.

"It's really just a question of timing in terms of retiring his jersey. The timing has to be right for both Brett and the organization. Brett will be a first ballot Hall of Famer in 2016, and we would like to retire his number prior to his induction."

This is not the first time Murphy has said he would retire the number, however. In 2012, he spoke about putting away No. 4 for good. At that point, the two were not on good terms after a rough breakup when Murphy let Favre go.

Murphy has changed his tune this time, and he is predicted to make the move long before Favre is inducted into the Hall of Fame.

"I know that many of our fans were upset that Brett played for the Vikings. As time goes by, though, I think wounds are healed and people focus more on the great things he did for the team during his 16 years here,” Murphy said.

"We do want to bring Brett back into the fold, and plan on retiring his number. He deserves to have his number retired for what he accomplished, and meant to the Packers, during his time here."