Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress said that Brett Favre is "pain-free right now" but would not say whether the team would definitely re-sign the retired quarterback, the St. Paul Pioneer-Press reported Friday.

"My understanding is that he is pain-free right now," Childress told KFAN-AM 1130 in a radio interview. "Does he have the endurance and the stamina in that arm yet? He doesn't know that yet. It's no different than grabbing a golf club for the first time during the year when you rip around 18 holes, and you wake up the next day and your side hurts. You say, 'Geez, I haven't felt that muscle in a while.' So he's got to build some endurance in that and see if he thinks he can get it back to where he wants to get it."

One Vikings player who didn't speak as glowingly about Favre was defensive end Ray Edwards, who told ESPN that Favre should not have the same "prima-donna attitude" that he had last season with the New York Jets.

Childress dismissed Edwards' comments, saying "I think it was all in jest. Defensive linemen, usually by nature, hate quarterbacks, and that's OK.

"I talked to (former Viking) Tony Richardson, who was (Favre's) teammate at the Jets. He had nothing but great things to say about him. Did I get into, Did he have a separate locker? It's hard for me to see that. Of course, I know how Winter Park is set up. I think he'll be a great locker room guy. He's probably one of the better practical jokers out there over the course of 16 years, and he's not afraid to give it to anybody, and I think he'll be a tremendous teammate, as well.

"I think what that is is that's a guy that plays with passion, to a degree wears his emotions on his sleeve," Childress said. "You really don't really like quarterbacks that ride a roller coaster. Obviously his standard was usually pretty good. Could he get wild? Could he throw some interceptions? Sure he could. But he plays the game with enthusiasm and with excitement. There's kind of a boyishness even though he's approaching 40 years old."

The Pioneer-Press said that a Favre signing might not happen for awhile: Childress is spending next week fishing in Alaska with Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid, and Childress' daughter Cara is getting married July 11.

On Wednesday, Vikings owner Zygi Wilf told a group of very interested season ticket holders that the possibility of Favre playing for the Vikings next season hinges on Favre’s surgically repaired right arm.

“Right now, it’s all up to Brett Favre in terms of where his future is at,” Wilf told about 1,200 fans gathered at the State Theatre for a “State of the Vikings” event. “I’ll just leave it at that.”

The comments echoed Favre’s statement in an interview with HBO two days earlier. Favre said then that he is considering a return if his throwing arm will allow it and that the Vikings are the only team has has spoken to about a comeback.

Dr. James Andrews performed surgery on Favre on May 22 to address an injured biceps tendon. After throwing to high school students on Wednesday at Oak Grove High School in Hattiesburg, Miss., Favre told WDAM-TV that he wasn’t ready yet.

“Dr. Andrews said more or less four weeks you should know if (surgery) was completely successful,” Favre said on Wednesday, about 3½ weeks after the surgery. “I threw a couple of balls today where I really felt it ... different places in my shoulder where it’s sore.

“I threw the ball OK, but OK isn’t good enough in the National Football League. At least not for me. So it’s got to get better.”

Coach Brad Childress, who has spoken to Favre on occasion this offseason about his interest in playing, told the fans during a panel discussion that Favre is doing everything he can to see if he has enough juice left in that famed cannon that will turn 40 this year.

“He’s trying to make a push to get back,” Childress said. “I just know this, he won’t play unless he feels like he’s able to play at the level that he’s playeed over the course of the years. I know he’s working hard.”

About 1,200 fans in attendance hollered boisterously at the mention of Favre’s name on Wednesday night.

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There is no set deadline for Favre to make a decision, but training camp looms at the end of July, and Favre said he knows that the sooner a conclusion can be made, the better.

“I don’t need to wait for camp to say it’s 100 percent,” Favre told the television station. “I need to know before then, and so do the Vikings.”

In his first interview since being released by the New York Jets, Favre told HBO on Monday that if his arm “ever gets to the point where it feels like it did before it started hurting, then the biggest question mark is out of the way.”

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