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GoPackGo
08-06-2008, 11:45 PM
http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=442999
Brett Favre won't have huge impact with Jets

Posted: August 6, 2008

Brett Favre has been finally traded. What does it mean going from Green Bay to Gang Green? While this is the best possible scenario for the Packers other than him re-retiring, the Jets go from a messy quarterback competition to welcoming a legend that can help them compete for a playoff spot.
To the Packers, it will feel just like Favre had retired. He will have no effect on their playoff aspirations this season -- the Jets just face the weak NFC West in interconference play.

The Jets last made the AFC championship game a decade ago with another wily old quarterback, Vinny Testaverde. Though they've had a few playoff teams with Chad Pennington, Favre gives the Jets a passer who will put more fear in opponents. Throughout his time in New York, Pennington has been knocked for the limitations of his arm strength. Favre has none of that -- he can still make any throw.

Playing in the Big Apple is a lot different, though, from playing just northeast of Appleton, Wis. In Green Bay, Favre was embraced as the small-town hero of the only game in town. In New York, he will come in with great expectations from a testier fan base. If Favre comes out firing TDs to Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery early, he will earn rave reviews as Broadway Brett. But once he makes one of those patented "what was he thinking?" downfield interceptions -- something Pennington rarely has done -- the media and the Jets' faithful will be all over him.

Considering the Jets' aggressive offseason, if it's anything less than getting them to the playoffs, Favre will be seen as bust. And as only a short-term solution at quarterback, if he doesn't work out, he would throw the Jets further backward in finding a long-term answer at the position.

With Favre, the Jets are at best AFC wild-card contenders. In the AFC East, the move makes the Jets slightly better than the Bills, but the Patriots are still much better and the Dolphins are still much worse. Favre can't put the Jets near the class of Tom Brady and New England -- New York has too many other issues preventing that. More realistically, the Jets can jump over teams such as Buffalo, Tennessee, Cleveland, Denver and Houston as favorites to become the AFC's No. 6 seed.

Without Favre in Green Bay, the beginning of the Aaron Rodgers era can continue as planned. Of course, it's natural that skepticism comes with an unproven quarterback, but after all, when the Packers used a 2005 first-rounder on Rodgers, they had in mind they would need Rodgers to replace Favre down the line.

Eventually, the Packers needed to see what Rodgers could do, and this is the best time for it. The team is deep at running back, wide receiver and tight end, giving Rodgers plenty of good options in Mike McCarthy's passing offense. To protect Rodgers, the team has two fine tackles in Chad Clifton and Mark Tauscher. It also has a solid defense to both support and take pressure off Rodgers from winning games by needing to throw 30-plus times every week.

Sure, Favre inherits good receivers in Coles and Cotchery, has decent tight ends and a young line that should get a big boost from Alan Faneca. But the Jets still enter the season with limited pop in the running game. Although they retooled their defense, it struggled mightily to stop the run, rush the passer and force takeaways last season. You can bet Favre will be put in many more situations where he's trailing and needs to throw often.

The Packers' upper management, responsible for building a team that was an overtime field goal away from playing in Super Bowl 42, has become unpopular for not welcoming Favre back, trying to convince him to retire again and eventually trading him. But based on last season's success, GM Ted Thompson knows a little bit about making personnel decisions.

Just as they've been responsible for what has happened for Favre, they're also responsible for creating the best possible solution for the rest of their team going forward. When the Packers get back to the playoffs as a much stronger team than the Jets, they might be forgiven.

mission
08-06-2008, 11:51 PM
The article doesnt read kneejerk at all. Pretty balanced.

I really doubt he wrote that headline.

GoPackGo
08-06-2008, 11:54 PM
The article doesnt read kneejerk at all. Pretty balanced.

I really doubt he wrote that headline.

It was kneejerk because it was written so fast! As usual I agree with Vinnie's take

BF4MVP
08-06-2008, 11:56 PM
Nice article.

VegasPackFan
08-07-2008, 12:33 AM
But once he makes one of those patented "what was he thinking?" downfield interceptions -- something Pennington rarely has done -- the media and the Jets' faithful will be all over him.


LOL - I think the fans will be excited that they finally have a guy that can actually get the ball downfield at all. Who cares if it ends up in the wrong hands.

HarveyWallbangers
08-07-2008, 01:10 AM
Vinnie's my boy. I'm convinced he's a closet Packers fan--although I think his takes are balanced. He might have been the only national writer that was completely on the Pack's bandwagon before last year.

mmmdk
08-07-2008, 04:22 AM
Great article.

Badgerinmaine
08-07-2008, 09:10 AM
I agree--I think the article is thoughtful and well-written.

Maxie the Taxi
08-07-2008, 09:20 AM
I agree. Great article.

I can't remember Favre getting booed (seriously) in Green Bay. However, in New York the fans doen't have that reverence Green Bay reserved for Favre. I'll bet before the season ends, Favre hears his share of boo birds.

Bossman641
08-07-2008, 09:29 AM
I agree. Great article.

I can't remember Favre getting booed (seriously) in Green Bay. However, in New York the fans doen't have that reverence Green Bay reserved for Favre. I'll bet before the season ends, Favre hears his share of boo birds.

I agree.

For the most part Favre has lived a very sheltered life in GB. He's been praised as Jesus, yet the fans still gave him his privacy, at least that's my understanding.

In NY/NJ, the media will be all over him. If we got sick of hearing his comments before, I'm guessing it will be 100% worse in NY. Everywhere he turns there will be a reporter trying to get a soundbite.

On top of that, NY fans won't give Favre any of the leeway he had in GB. I hope it doesn't happen, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if he is booed before year end.

I really hope his heart is in it and he is fully committed to putting in the work necessary, otherwise I think he could be in for a rude awakening.

HarveyWallbangers
08-07-2008, 03:05 PM
Vinnie's my boy, but I think he gives a good take without being too insulting to either side.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=443126


Favre fixes just one hole in Jets' fuselage
Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News

The New York Jets plugged up their leaky quarterback situation by trading for Brett Favre late Wednesday night. Favre's rifle right arm can't cover up the remaining holes in their offense, however.

In Green Bay, Favre, although disappointed that the front office didn't spring for a marquee wide receiver such as Randy Moss, had a pretty good foundation of offensive talent around him last season. Donald Driver and Greg Jennings did the job at wideout; Donald Lee helped out at tight end; and after a slow first half, the running game eventually went into overdrive with Ryan Grant.

Making all that possible was a line with savvy players at the tackles and promising young guys inside. The unit allowed only 19 sacks while the Packers averaged more than 36 pass attempts. It also helped spring Grant to 5.1 yards per carry.

In New York, Favre will quickly learn that he had it very good in Green Bay. Now there will be the unrealistic expectations for the Jets to keep up with Moss, Tom Brady and the rest of the Patriots on the scoreboard. The reality is, the Packers have a much better supporting cast than the Jets.

At least Favre will have some good receivers. Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery are an underrated pair. Coles used to be more of a home run guy, but now he has become a reliable 5-11, 193-pound target who runs shorter routes to move the chains. Cotchery (6-0, 207) is bigger, but he also can explode downfield when needed. Favre should feel as comfortable with them as he did with Driver and Jennings, and both Coles and Cotchery can expect to run more deep routes than they did for Chad Pennington. Brad Smith should also get some good chances as a No. 3 receiver.

As for the rest of the Jets' offense, there are significant concerns, starting with the all-important line. Favre is the most durable quarterback in NFL history, but he's still 38 years old and needs to be kept clean of hits. The Jets gave up a whopping 53 sacks -- nearly three times as many as the Packers -- while averaging 32 attempts per game last season.

Before the Favre trade, the signing of former Steelers left guard Alan Faneca was the Jets' biggest move of the offseason. But the fact that Pittsburgh, a team that seems to know when to let aging players go, didn't re-sign Faneca makes you wonder. And even if he's still playing at an elite level, Faneca's strength is run blocking.

The big protection concerns, though, lie on the outside. Left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson, who's entering his third NFL season, has yet to perform like a No. 4 overall pick. At right tackle, the Jets overspent to get Damien Woody, who was part of a Lions line that gave up 54 sacks last season.

The only thing Favre can count on from the Jets' line is great play from the man snapping him the ball, third-year center Nick Mangold. The third-year center is wise beyond his playing years, and it won't take long for him to get on the same page with Favre.

The Packers excelled at using two-tight end sets last season, giving them versatility both in the running and the passing games. In New York, don't be fooled into thinking Favre's reunion with Bubba Franks will yield similar results.

Franks was hurt for most of the season and factored little into the success of Favre and the Packers last season. He's not the receiving threat he once was. Chris Baker can be a good receiver -- if he's both happy and healthy, which isn't the case now. The Jets' other tight end, Dustin Keller, is talented, but he is only a rookie.

Unlike with Pennington or Kellen Clemens, the Jets can call for any throw in the playbook with Favre under center. But for any quarterback, even one with a strong arm, it's hard to throw deeper routes when the protection isn't there.

It's also difficult to operate an efficient passing game without the help of a consistently productive running game, something the Jets haven't had since Curtis Martin's last big year in 2004.

In assessing the effect of the running game on Favre, let's get two misconceptions out of the way.

1. Didn't Favre play great football when the Packers' running game struggled in the first half of last season? He did, but that was because Green Bay threw when it wanted to throw early, instead of being forced to throw often when trailing later in games. To that end, Favre was helped by a Packers defense that kept games tight in the first half -- and a line that kept him upright. When the Packers did find their running game later in the year, Favre was more productive and efficient.

2. Didn't the Jets finish with a higher-ranked running game (19th) than the Packers (22nd) last season? That's true, but remember, the Jets got off to a better start on the ground before they began to stagnate, while the Packers went from having a nonexistent ground game to a prolific finish rushing the ball. In contrast to Grant, Thomas Jones ended up averaging a paltry 3.6 yards per carry, his worse average since his forgettable days with the Arizona Cardinals.

What Grant provided down the stretch was the threat of a big-play runner, which set up Favre to complete some big pass plays. Faneca and Woody were brought in to help Jones boost his average. But if the Jets continue to pound Jones, who turns 30 on Aug. 19, his anemic numbers won't go up much even with improved blocking. To provide some of the pop Grant gave the Packers and give Favre a West Coast-style outlet when he drops back, the Jets need to get speedster Leon Washington a lot more touches.

Finally, let's not forget the defense, which played a big role in Green Bay's run in 2007. It's iffy whether either one of the Jets' key additions on defense -- tackle Kris Jenkins (too many injuries) and linebacker Calvin Pace (one good year in Arizona) -- will have a major impact on a unit that finished 29th against the run and had trouble getting sacks and takeaways.

Favre will certainly inject life into the entire Jets offense with his exuberance for the game, and he will still make some jaw-dropping plays to win games New York wouldn't have won with Pennington or Clemens. But the combination of getting accustomed to a new offense and the lack of the same caliber of personnel he had in Green Bay will cause Favre to experience a natural drop-off in production, efficiency and wins.

Maxie the Taxi
08-07-2008, 03:14 PM
That last paragraph is a mouthful.