HarveyWallbangers
12-16-2008, 08:44 PM
Pretty amusing, and mostly deferential, story from what appears to be an overseas journalist.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20081216/sp_afp/amfootusjetsfavre_081216231917
Grey-bearded gridiron hero Favre defies time
by Sebastian Smith
NEW YORK (AFP) – If American football's helmeted, padded players look like space-age supermen, then quarterback Brett Favre resembles a hero from another time.
Fans call him the "Gunslinger" and to see the tall, grey-bearded New York Jets star can indeed recall some haggard dueler from the Wild West.
At 39, Favre is old for his brutal sport and looks it. His cropped hair and beard are grey, his face reddened and battered.
After the Jets squeaked through to a lucky 31-27 victory against the Buffalo Bills last Sunday, Favre stood alone in the changing room, a small cut on one of his shins, looking closer to grandfatherly than top sportsman.
Yet for one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, age appears to be no more frightening than the Bills defenders -- ferocious men a decade younger and sometimes a good third heavier.
Gunslingers, after all, like a good fight.
"To me, you find out what you're made of in tough times," Favre remarked in his quiet southern drawl.
Favre joined the Jets earlier this year after 16 seasons with the Green Bay Packers, where he led the way to a famous Super Bowl victory and broke just about every quarterback record in existence.
Meadowlands Stadium outside Manhattan might seem a strange place for the legend's last hurrah.
The Jets are poor cousins to New York's other football team, current Super Bowl champs the Giants, and they haven't won a Super Bowl since 1969.
Even with Favre they can be embarrassingly erratic.
For a while this season they looked to be transformed, riding a winning streak that made them shoo-ins for the post-season playoffs and even -- just maybe -- a tilt at the Super Bowl.
But then came a three-game losing run prior to Sunday's victory and now they likely must win the final two games this month to survive into the playoffs.
Critics say part of the blame for that rollercoaster falls on Favre.
Teammates and fans say the opposite -- that he keeps the whole adventure going.
"He has brought an energy to the team," receiver Wallace Wright said in the locker room after the Bills game as he put on his jacket and adjusted a huge diamond bracelet.
A fresh-faced 24-year-old, Wright calls Favre "one of the greatest who ever lived" and says the veteran leads by example rather than through long speeches.
Surprisingly, Favre is also regarded as one of the lads, someone renowned for off-field pranks -- he reportedly stuffed a dead animal in a Jets teammate's locker -- and joyous, schoolboy celebrations during games.
"You'd think he's a rookie out there. He's out there having fun," Wright said.
Favre's main contradiction, though, comes when he throws the ball.
Football romantics love his signature long pass, a spiraling delivery that stretches physics and, when it works, can beat an entire team. For years he has been reputed to possess one of the strongest throwing arms in the game.
Yet football pragmatists hate the long pass. It's risky, tends to land in the wrong hands, and can lose a game as much as win one.
"Gunslinger" isn't always meant as a compliment.
"He can be a miracle man, but it works both ways," said Jeremy Simon, 30, a fan attending Sunday's game against the Bills. "He can win a game or kill a game. He throws it all over the place -- he likes to take a bet."
The Jets have tried to tame Favre, instructing him to stick to short passes.
There are still glimpses of the old gambler and they are not always happy, just as the Jets' progress under his leadership has been far from smooth.
Each time Favre's more adventurous passes misfired Sunday or ended in the hands of the Bills, the press box at Meadowlands erupted in groans.
"Oh, he just couldn't resist, could he?" complained one journalist after Favre threw a third-quarter interception, promptly converted by the Bills into a lead.
Favre acknowledged his weaknesses.
"I under-threw it," he said. "Maybe I don't have the arm I once had."
But he was in no mood to dwell on failings and nor are the legions of fans who gathered for boozy picnics in the stadium carpark before the game.
"Any time he's on the field we have a chance to win," said Sean Winters, 43, who came from Long Island in his mini-van with friends, a mountain of beer cans, a barbecue, 40 steaks, and a black sofa.
"He expects to win, so I expect to win."
Favre is philosophical about whether he can produce a final miracle.
Asked at a press conference earlier this month whether he still has the magic, he delved into his pocket with a smile.
"Let me see what I've got," he said.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20081216/sp_afp/amfootusjetsfavre_081216231917
Grey-bearded gridiron hero Favre defies time
by Sebastian Smith
NEW YORK (AFP) – If American football's helmeted, padded players look like space-age supermen, then quarterback Brett Favre resembles a hero from another time.
Fans call him the "Gunslinger" and to see the tall, grey-bearded New York Jets star can indeed recall some haggard dueler from the Wild West.
At 39, Favre is old for his brutal sport and looks it. His cropped hair and beard are grey, his face reddened and battered.
After the Jets squeaked through to a lucky 31-27 victory against the Buffalo Bills last Sunday, Favre stood alone in the changing room, a small cut on one of his shins, looking closer to grandfatherly than top sportsman.
Yet for one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, age appears to be no more frightening than the Bills defenders -- ferocious men a decade younger and sometimes a good third heavier.
Gunslingers, after all, like a good fight.
"To me, you find out what you're made of in tough times," Favre remarked in his quiet southern drawl.
Favre joined the Jets earlier this year after 16 seasons with the Green Bay Packers, where he led the way to a famous Super Bowl victory and broke just about every quarterback record in existence.
Meadowlands Stadium outside Manhattan might seem a strange place for the legend's last hurrah.
The Jets are poor cousins to New York's other football team, current Super Bowl champs the Giants, and they haven't won a Super Bowl since 1969.
Even with Favre they can be embarrassingly erratic.
For a while this season they looked to be transformed, riding a winning streak that made them shoo-ins for the post-season playoffs and even -- just maybe -- a tilt at the Super Bowl.
But then came a three-game losing run prior to Sunday's victory and now they likely must win the final two games this month to survive into the playoffs.
Critics say part of the blame for that rollercoaster falls on Favre.
Teammates and fans say the opposite -- that he keeps the whole adventure going.
"He has brought an energy to the team," receiver Wallace Wright said in the locker room after the Bills game as he put on his jacket and adjusted a huge diamond bracelet.
A fresh-faced 24-year-old, Wright calls Favre "one of the greatest who ever lived" and says the veteran leads by example rather than through long speeches.
Surprisingly, Favre is also regarded as one of the lads, someone renowned for off-field pranks -- he reportedly stuffed a dead animal in a Jets teammate's locker -- and joyous, schoolboy celebrations during games.
"You'd think he's a rookie out there. He's out there having fun," Wright said.
Favre's main contradiction, though, comes when he throws the ball.
Football romantics love his signature long pass, a spiraling delivery that stretches physics and, when it works, can beat an entire team. For years he has been reputed to possess one of the strongest throwing arms in the game.
Yet football pragmatists hate the long pass. It's risky, tends to land in the wrong hands, and can lose a game as much as win one.
"Gunslinger" isn't always meant as a compliment.
"He can be a miracle man, but it works both ways," said Jeremy Simon, 30, a fan attending Sunday's game against the Bills. "He can win a game or kill a game. He throws it all over the place -- he likes to take a bet."
The Jets have tried to tame Favre, instructing him to stick to short passes.
There are still glimpses of the old gambler and they are not always happy, just as the Jets' progress under his leadership has been far from smooth.
Each time Favre's more adventurous passes misfired Sunday or ended in the hands of the Bills, the press box at Meadowlands erupted in groans.
"Oh, he just couldn't resist, could he?" complained one journalist after Favre threw a third-quarter interception, promptly converted by the Bills into a lead.
Favre acknowledged his weaknesses.
"I under-threw it," he said. "Maybe I don't have the arm I once had."
But he was in no mood to dwell on failings and nor are the legions of fans who gathered for boozy picnics in the stadium carpark before the game.
"Any time he's on the field we have a chance to win," said Sean Winters, 43, who came from Long Island in his mini-van with friends, a mountain of beer cans, a barbecue, 40 steaks, and a black sofa.
"He expects to win, so I expect to win."
Favre is philosophical about whether he can produce a final miracle.
Asked at a press conference earlier this month whether he still has the magic, he delved into his pocket with a smile.
"Let me see what I've got," he said.