Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre said he is no longer suing former NFL player and sports commentator Pat McAfee for defamation.
Favre filed a defamation suit against McAfee in February over comments he made about Favre’s involvement in a welfare case in Mississippi calling him a “thief” who was “stealing from poor people in Mississippi.”
Favre is among those named in the civil lawsuit filed by the Mississippi Department of Human Services after millions of dollars were kept from state programs meant to help those affected by poverty.
However, McAfee posted a video on Twitter and said the matter was resolved.
“As many of you know, Brett Favre sued me over statements that I made about him in this program. As I confirmed in my court papers and I repeat here, my statements expressing comedic style were based solely on public information and allegations,” McAfee said during his program on Thursday.
“I am pleased to report that based solely on me again clarifying these points now, with no settlement paid, Brett is withdrawing his suit against me. I would much rather talk about sports than about lawsuits, so I’m glad we have all of this behind us,” McAfee said.
“I’m happy that Pat McAfee and I have settled this litigation,” Favre tweeted in response to McAfee. “Like Pat said, he was attempting to be funny and not commenting based on any personal knowledge. We’d both much rather talk about football.”
A 2020 state audit found at least $77 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds were misspent. Some of the money was meant to be used to build a volleyball facility at the University of Southern Mississippi, Favre’s alma mater, as well as $1.1 million to the former quarterback for a public service announcement campaign, according to investigators, CNN reports.
Favre returned $500,000 in May 2020 and another $600,000 in October 2021, but the auditor’s office maintained in 2021 that Favre still owed $228,000 in interest payments.
Favre denied knowing the money he was given was welfare money, saying that he was being “unjustly smeared in the media.”
Eight people have been indicted and six have pleaded guilty, according to ESPN. Favre has not been criminally charged, but last month, a judge ruled that he would remain in the civil suit. He has since demanded a jury trial.
