According to ESPN insider Chris Mortensen, Brett Favre has contacted Packers head coach Mike McCarthy in the last two weeks and told McCarthy he might be interested in returning.

Also appearing on ESPN's "NFL Live" this afternoon, Packers teammate Al Davis, who has spoken directly to Favre, confirmed the veteran signal caller has "the itch to play."

Favre, of course, announced his retirement from the NFL in March -- although he's yet to file his official retirement papers.

Harris stressed that doesn't mean Favre will return -- or that he'll still have the itch -- when training camp opens.

It's also worth noting that Profootballtalk.com's Mike Florio recently reported that some league insiders are assuming that agent James "Bus" Cook is pushing Favre to play in 2008.

According to Florio, the assumption is based on a perception that Cook has been talking openly (but not yet publicly) about Favre’s supposed desire to play in 2008.

Cook said in the immediate wake of Favre’s decision to retire that Cook thinks Favre wanted to play in 2008, but that Favre believed the Packers didn’t want him to return. There also was a report from Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times of Cook quietly shopping Favre via trade -- a report Florio later confirmed.

I think the big question here is how irritated Packers officials have to be at this development.

As Mortensen explained, the Packers have gone to great lengths to prepare for the post-Favre era and they might not be all that interested in having the legendary signal caller return.

I also have to wonder how this news is going over with Aaron Rodgers, the man who has been diligently preparing to fill Favre's ginormous shoes -- both on the field and in the locker room -- this fall.

It's safe to assume Rodgers is no happier to hear this than McCarthy and general manager Ted Thompson, both of whom have gone out of their way to make sure Rodgers is physically and mentally up to the task of taking the team over.

I suspect Thompson's decision to officially retire Favre's jersey on opening day was part of their attempt to put the kibosh on a possible return.

That worked well. ...

Their efforts also included the selection of two quarterbacks -- Brian Brohm and LSU's Matt Flynn -- in April's draft. Many observers considered Brohm the most NFL-ready quarterback in the draft since he's coming out of a pro-style offense at Louisville.

Adding to the intrigue, SI.com's Mike Lombardi -- a well-connected former NFL personnel man -- blogged earlier today that Favre told an unnamed teammate that he would consider playing for other teams if the Packers aren't interested.

So. ... Do I think all this will amount to anything?

Well, it will certainly make for a much busier month of July.

But I'm not ready to bit on this one just yet. I'm not convinced a June "itch" will evolve into a July return any more than I'm unconvinced we'll see No. 4 jogging onto the field for the Packers' first offensive series.

But as Mortensen reminded viewers, McCarthy predicted Favre might go through a period in which he felt a desire to return (before hopefully coming to his senses and climbing back aboard the lawnmower or hitting the duck blind).

But as Florio noted, if Favre is determined to return his options would be to play for the Packers or no one. As to the Packers, the options would be to welcome him back (and pay him an eight-figure base salary), trade him or cut him loose.

The bottom line? Prepare to hear more about this -- a LOT more about this -- in coming days and weeks.