Add Jerome Bettis to the list of people who don’t understand what the Packers are doing with Brett Favre.

Bettis, the former Steeler who’s now an NFL analyst on NBC, was a guest on Dan Patrick’s radio show today, and Patrick asked him, ”If you were a Packer right now, and the Packers said ‘We don’t want Brett Favre in here, we’re going with Aaron Rodgers,’ as a veteran, how would you feel?”

Said Bettis, “As a veteran, I would say, ‘Are you kidding me?’ I would say, ‘Why would you take such a hard stance?’ I understand you have to think of the future. But as a player, I would say, you know what, let’s go out and give them an equal opportunity and let the best man win. I understand Aaron Rodgers — it’s a delicate situation for him. But if you let the competition decide who wins, no one can be upset about that. And Brett may not win, and if that happens, you’re in the best of all situations because Aaron has proved to you that he can go out there and get it done.”

Do any Packers veterans feel that way? So far, none have said so publicly. But Bettis points out why, from a PR standpoint, Favre has a much easier case to make than the Packers do. All Favre needs to say is, “Let me compete and let the best player win.” That’s what NFL training camps are supposed to be about.