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According to ESPN insider Chris Mortensen, after a conference call with Packers team officials on Tuesday in which he emphatically expressed his desire to play in 2008, Brett Favre on Friday formally asked for his contractual release from the Packers in a letter, sources close to Favre and the team said.

In an exclusive report, Mortensen advised readers the letter was sent by Favre's agent, James "Bus" Cook, via overnight mail on Thursday and arrived at the Packers facility Friday morning.

Per Mortensen, Cook, on behalf of Favre, expressed a desire to have an amicable parting, as the Packers have been reluctant to embrace his return.

During a conference call on Tuesday that included Packers general manager Ted Thompson, head coach Mike McCarthy, Favre and Cook, sources told Mortensen that Favre stated emphatically he wanted to play again.

When Favre was reminded by the Packers' brass that it was in March when the quarterback said publicly and privately that he wasn't 100 percent committed to football, sources said. Favre acknowledged his state of mind at the time, but added that he never felt he was a 100 percent committed in March of previous years, either.

Favre felt he had to make a decision to retire because the Packers were pressing him for an answer, the source told Mortensen.

Mortensen further reports that during the same conference call on Tuesday, neither Thompson nor McCarthy were openly receptive or enthused about Favre's desire to unretire, prompting Favre to direct Cook to request his release from the Packers.

Favre has three years remaining on his contract for a total of $39 million. He currently is on the reserve-retired list.

Favre wants a mutual parting rather than having to force the Packers' hand by writing a letter to request his reinstatement to the active 80-man roster. Under league policy, the team would have to comply or release him.

Cook's letter did suggest that Favre's accomplishments for the franchise merited the team honoring his request to be released, also asking that the action be taken "with no strings attached." Favre does not want to be traded, sources told Mortensen, because he wants the freedom of choice to play for any other franchise.

Making this story much more interesting is the fact Mortensen actually witnessed the veteran signal caller working out at a local high school in Hattiesburg, Miss., this morning.

Favre did not wish to speak publicly about his situation when approached, but that doesn't mean he didn't speak off the record and that he's not the source for Mortensen's reporting.

In fact, based on the confidence Mort demonstrated in making the report on ESPN's "NFL Live" moments ago, I'd be willing to bet that Favre and Cook are the ones providing the info here.

So. ... Now the week plus of speculation as to how interested in making a comeback Favre can end. He's good to go. The only question now is how the situation plays out.

By asking for his release -- and making sure the story goes public, Favre is clearly making an effort to limit the Packers' options. Had he sent the formal request for reinstatement, the Packers could either kept Favre on the roster or release him.

Putting him back on the roster would have at least afforded team official the opportunity to trade Favre to a destination that would limit public relations issues.

Simply releasing Favre would allow him to determine his next team.

The Packers responded to Mortensen's report a short time ago by posting a statement that read in part, "Brett earned and exercised the right to retire on his terms. We wanted him to return and welcomed him back on more than one occasion.

"Brett's press conference and subsequent conversations in the following weeks illustrated his commitment to retirement.

"The finality of his decision to retire was accepted by the organization. At that point, the Green Bay Packers made the commitment to move forward with our football team.

"As a retired player, Brett has the option to apply for reinstatement with Commissioner Goodell. If that were to occur, he would become an active member of the Green Bay Packers. As always, the Packers will do what's right and in the best interest of the team."

It's clearly a tough situation for the Packers, who suddenly find themselves roped into the role of villain no matter how they handle this one.

Adding to the intrigue, Mortensen also reports that Favre appeared to be in excellent physical condition during his Friday morning workout and threw the ball with ease, even throwing a football 50 yards "on a rope" with high school receivers.

Mortensen added that Favre has been throwing and running with the team for more than a month.

Bottom line?

As NFL.com insider Pat Kirwan put it this morning: "Favre is a 38-year-old QB who has an 18-4 record in his last 22 games and is coming off a season in which he led the Packers offense to a No. 2 ranking in the NFL and threw for 4,155 yards and 28 touchdowns.

"He can still play -- he knows it and so do a number of NFL franchises. ..."

My guess would be that front offices in Minnesota, Chicago and Detroit are among those that just went on red alert.

It's safe to say I'll be watching for more and will continue reporting as developments warrant. ...

In the meantime, you might enjoy this week's inaugural FootballDiehards.com podcast in which host Jeff Vernetti and myself discussed the potential value of both Favre and Aaron Rodgers while speculating on the various outcomes of this story on Thursday.

And as always, those interested in following along in real-time should keep an eye on the News & Views section of the site while more in-depth analysis is posted here, in the Headline News section.