Brett Favre was always the guy you couldn't help but root for, even if you weren't a Packers fan. He was the "Gunslinger." He played through broken bones, threw touchdowns with a grin, and seemed like the most relatable superstar in the history of the NFL. But things have changed. A lot. If you've been scrolling through Netflix lately, you might have seen Untold: The Fall of Favre, a documentary that basically tears down that "everyman" facade brick by brick.
Honestly, it’s a tough watch. The film, directed by Rebecca Gitlitz and released in May 2025, doesn't just look at the highlight reels. It digs into the stuff that makes people deeply uncomfortable: the Jenn Sterger sexting scandal and that massive Mississippi welfare fraud mess. It’s a messy story about power, celebrity, and how a hero can fall so far that even the gold jacket from Canton starts to look a bit tarnished.
The Jenn Sterger Scandal: More Than Just a Headline
When the news first broke in 2010 about Favre sending lewd photos and voicemails to Jenn Sterger, then a sideline reporter for the New York Jets, the internet was a different place. People made jokes. Late-night hosts had a field day. But Untold: The Fall of Favre brings Sterger back to the forefront to remind everyone that for her, it wasn't a punchline. It was a career-killer.
Sterger explains in the doc that she actually never even met Favre in person. Think about that. He was a legendary quarterback, and she was a young woman trying to make it in sports media. She started getting these texts and voicemails out of nowhere. The documentary features some of those original recordings, and hearing Favre’s voice—sounding so casual while asking her to come to his hotel—is genuinely eerie.
Most people don't realize that Sterger was basically blackballed. While Favre was fined a measly $50,000 for "failing to cooperate" with the NFL's investigation, Sterger's opportunities in the industry dried up. The film makes a pretty strong case that we, as a culture, protected the star and buried the victim. It’s a recurring theme in the documentary: the "system" is built to keep people like Favre on top, no matter what they do off the field.
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The $77 Million Question in Mississippi
If the Sterger stuff was the warning shot, the Mississippi welfare scandal is the full-blown explosion. This is where the story gets really dark. We're talking about the poorest state in the country. Money that was supposed to go to families who couldn't afford food or rent—Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds—was instead funneled into pet projects.
One of those projects? A $5 million volleyball stadium at the University of Southern Mississippi.
Favre’s daughter played volleyball there. The documentary highlights text messages between Favre and Nancy New, the woman running the nonprofit that distributed the money. In one message, Favre literally asks, "If you were to pay me is there anyway [sic] the media can find out where it came from and how much?"
It’s a "smoking gun" moment that’s hard to ignore.
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Breaking Down the Numbers
To understand why people are so angry, you have to look at the scale of this. It wasn't just a few thousand dollars.
- $1.1 million: The amount paid to Favre for speaking engagements and radio spots he allegedly never showed up for.
- $5 million: The cost of the volleyball facility funded by welfare money.
- $2.1 million: Money sent to Prevacus, a pharmaceutical startup Favre was heavily invested in, which was supposedly developing a concussion drug.
Favre has denied knowing the money came from welfare funds. He’s even sued people for defamation, including the Mississippi state auditor, Shad White. But the documentary doesn't buy the "I didn't know" defense. It paints a picture of a man who used his influence to get what he wanted, regardless of where the cash was coming from.
Why This Untold Episode Hits Differently
The "Untold" series is known for giving subjects a chance to tell their side. But Favre? He declined to be interviewed for this one. He actually told the filmmakers, "If I wanted to make a documentary myself, I could have."
Because he isn't there to defend himself, the film relies on people like Ron Wolf, the former Packers GM who traded for him, and even former NFL star Michael Vick. Vick’s inclusion is interesting. He spent 18 months in prison for dogfighting. He points out the discrepancy in how the public treats different athletes when they mess up. It’s a blunt, uncomfortable comparison that forces you to think about race, class, and the "good ol' boy" network.
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There's also a heavy focus on Favre's father, Irv. The doc suggests that the pressure to be tough and please his hard-nosed coach of a dad might have contributed to his "I can do anything" attitude. It's a bit of armchair psychology, but it adds a layer of humanity to a guy who is currently being cast as a villain by a lot of the public.
The Parkinson’s Revelation
The documentary ends on a somber note. It shows footage from Favre’s 2024 testimony before Congress, where he unexpectedly revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. It was a shock to everyone.
Suddenly, the conversation shifted. Was his behavior a result of the thousands of hits he took to the head? Is he a victim of the game he loved? The film doesn't give him a pass, but it acknowledges that the "Gunslinger" legend came with a physical cost that is only now being fully realized. It’s a complicated ending for a complicated man.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Taxpayers
If you’ve watched Untold: The Fall of Favre and feel like you need to do more than just be mad on Twitter, here are a few ways to actually engage with the issues raised:
- Follow the Money: Support local investigative journalism. Organizations like Mississippi Today were the ones who broke the welfare story long before Netflix got a hold of it. Their reporter, Anna Wolfe, won a Pulitzer for this work.
- Demand Accountability: The Mississippi welfare case is still moving through the civil courts. Keep an eye on the updates regarding the recovery of the TANF funds.
- Look Beyond the Highlights: The next time a sports scandal breaks, remember Jenn Sterger. It’s easy to focus on the star, but there’s almost always someone else whose life was derailed while the cameras stayed on the athlete.
The documentary makes one thing very clear: the hero we thought we knew might never have existed in the first place. We just chose to see the touchdowns and ignore the rest.
To get the full picture of the legal battle, you should look up the latest filings in the Mississippi Department of Human Services civil suit. You can also research the "Families First for Mississippi" nonprofit to see how the redirection of funds impacted actual families in the state. Don't just take the documentary's word for it—check the audits yourself.