Another Fantastic Favre Article

[Packnut]

I remember the Upshaw hit. I was never as proud of #04 than I was when he takes that kind of hit and then throws for 6 two plays later. That is what seperates him from the Montana's and Elway's of the league.


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Nobody tests his mettle quite like NFL's iron-man QB
Sep. 26, 2007
By Clark Judge
CBSSports.com Senior Writer
Tell Clark your opinion!




The greatness of Brett Favre will be celebrated again this weekend, and why not? The record he's about to achieve is so remarkable, so magnanimous, so downright hard to fathom that it may never be broken.

You heard me. Never.


Brett Favre's productivity remains high in his 16th season. (US Presswire)
OK, so you can name three quarterbacks right now who one day might eclipse the NFL record for career touchdown passes. Terrific. So can I. But that's not what I'm talking about.

I'm talking about a record Favre already owns, one he extends each week: continuous starts by a quarterback, which reaches 241 (261, including playoffs) on Sunday in Minnesota. The last time the guy missed a game was Sept. 6, 1992, when 41 was President, the Chicago Bulls were royalty and the Baltimore Ravens were the Cleveland Browns.

"That's unbelievable," said Seattle's Matt Hasselbeck, who studied behind Favre for three seasons. "Honestly, I don't know if there's anything like it in all of sports."

I do. I'd equate it to Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak which hasn't been broken since the Yankees centerfielder set it in 1941. Pete Rose came close, but he still finished 12 short of tying the mark.

And that was 29 years ago.

To put Favre's record in perspective, get a load of this: Dating back to 1992 Chicago started 20 quarterbacks (21 on Sunday), while Arizona and Washington started 17 each. Nobody except Houston -- which started four -- comes close, but the Texans have been in business six seasons.

Favre is in his 16th with the Packers.

To appreciate what Favre has done -- and keeps doing -- forget about statistics and just watch him play. This is not Dan Marino or Peyton Manning avoiding the sack with a quick release; this is someone who operates so recklessly -- throwing into coverages, bouncing around in the pocket, scrambling to daylight -- he practically invites opposing linemen to take runs at him.

And plenty have.

I remember the shot he absorbed in a 1998 game against Tampa Bay when Bucs defensive end Regan Upshaw slammed into Favre early in the fourth quarter as the quarterback rolled to one side, sidestepped a potential sack and looked to throw downfield.

The blow was resounding, and it came from Favre's blindside, knocking the quarterback into Iowa. Favre popped back up, slapped Upshaw in the helmet and returned to the huddle.

"It was an unbelievable hit," said Philadelphia's Andy Reid, then a Packers assistant. "He was literally looking out of the earhole, and he's trying to fix his helmet while he's pointing at (Upshaw). But he can't see him. And he's saying, 'That was nuthin'; that was nuthin'' while he's looking out the stinking earhole."

Two plays later Favre threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Freeman to stake Green Bay to a 23-0 lead en route to victory.

"It was the most unbelievable play I've ever seen," Hasselbeck said. "He got up before Regan Upshaw did. It was a bootleg to the right, and Mike Holmgren told him, 'Brett, whatever you do don't stop.'

"Sure enough, he swims the guy, stops and gets drilled. Then he gets up, and the whole stadium is chanting, 'Favre, Favre ... MVP, MVP ...' Tampa might've been the better team that year, but they were like: We can't beat this guy.

"Then he throws that touchdown two plays later. It was crazy. I've never seen anything like it in my life."

Maybe that's because Hasselbeck spent only three seasons with Favre and the Packers. Stick around, and you're liable to witness the unimaginable. Remember, for instance, when Favre had that broken thumb on his throwing hand in 2003? That was supposed to end the streak and put Doug Pederson in command of the offense.

Yeah, sure. Pederson threw two passes all season.

In the Packers' media guide, the team lists 15 serious injuries Favre sustained during his career, and they include a separated shoulder, a concussion, a sprained left knee and a "softball-sized bruise" of his left hamstring.

It also lists his record in games following those injuries: He's 9-6.

"I remember when we had Jim McMahon (as the backup), and we went to the Super Bowl," said Holmgren, the former Green Bay coach who is now with Seattle. "Brett got hit and came up spitting blood. We happened to have a timeout. So he comes out, goes over to the bench and I get Jim ready.

"We were down on the 4 and were going in, so McMahon was excited because even he could throw a 4-yard pass in those days. Then here comes Favre. The trainer came up to me and said, 'He's bleeding.' I said, 'How much is he bleeding? A little? A lot?' And he tells me, 'I'll check.' Well, before I know it, Brett's standing in the huddle."

Typical. If there's one thing that typifies Favre it's a durability that won't tolerate setbacks. Maybe that's why Favre in 2004 was named the "Toughest Athlete in Sports" by USA Today and chosen as the "Toughest Guy in America" that same year by Men's Journal.

"I've seen him come into the training room on Tuesday, and his foot looks like the color of our helmets," said Minnesota safety Darren Sharper, who used to team with Favre. "It's bloodshot, and he can't walk. Then he goes out and plays Sunday and throws for 200 yards and three touchdowns. It's unbelievable how tough he is."

When I asked Sharper which impressed him more -- Favre's touchdown record or his iron-man achievement -- he responded in a nanosecond.

"The consecutive starts," he said. "I think that's the most difficult record for any quarterback to achieve."

He's not alone. Of the 15 or 20 persons I polled this summer, no one cited the touchdown mark as Favre's greatest achievement. Instead, all pointed to an iron-man streak that is in its 16th season.

"Are you kidding me?" Jets quarterback Chad Pennington said. "For a quarterback to make that many consecutive starts makes no sense, especially with football being a game where there are so many injuries. People have no idea how unbelievable that is. To me, it's going to be one of the toughest records to break."

Pennington speaks with authority on the subject. Since joining the Jets' starting lineup in 2002 he missed time in all but one season. In 2003, he was sidelined the first six games with a fractured left hand. In 2004 he sat out three starts with a damaged rotator cuff. In 2005 he was sidelined all but three games after re-injuring his shoulder.

Finally, in 2006, he made it through a season without a hiccup, only to sit out his second start this season with a sprained ankle.

"It's not as if (Favre) hasn't gotten hurt," Hasselbeck said. "He's been hurt for almost every single one of those games during that streak. And it always seemed that when he had serious injuries the Packers would have a bye.

"It's unbelievable. I was there, and it's unbelievable. He would have a size-15 on one foot and a size-13 on the other, and, it was like he's going to be out six weeks. They'd tell me, 'It's your team for six weeks,' and then he shows up and plays the next week. I'd say, 'Wait a minute, he's on crutches,' but he'd play. And he'd play really well."

He still plays really well. In case you missed it, Favre has six touchdowns, no interceptions and two victories in his last six quarters of play. The Packers are 3-0, and Brett Favre is about to make history.

Again.

"Quarterbacks should model their game and play it the way Brett plays it," Detroit's Jon Kitna said. "And that's with a passion. Nowadays, most quarterbacks are taught to play cautious and to play not to lose.

"Peyton Manning plays like Brett plays. He doesn't care if he throws an interception; he's coming right back at you. And I like that.

"But there's so much pressure on the quarterback you don't see a lot of gunslingers like Brett anymore. I love the way he plays, and I love being in his division."

Once I thought the only certainties in life were death, taxes and two-hour waits at the local DMV. I don't know how I forgot Brett Favre. If it's Sunday I know where to find him. It's the same place he was last year. And the year before that. And the year before that.

In short, it's Groundhog Day.

And maybe that's the joy of this streak. It's not one pass or another win that makes Brett Favre unique. It's a body of work that started 16 years ago and never changes and never ends.

"I think it's one of the great records of all time," said Holmgren. "It's unbelievable. Simply unbelievable.

[Scott Campbell]

That is a great article. Love the stories by Holmy and ex-teammates.

[MTPackerfan]

cool story, thanks for posting it.

[Maxie the Taxi]

Enjoyed the article. Thanks.

(I think, though, that all of Favre's records will be broken by Peyton Manning in not too long, incl. the consecutive game record. Manning always unloads the ball before he gets nailed.)

[The Leaper]

Manning does not possess the freakish athletic genes that Favre has. The Colts will eventually head into decline, and I doubt Manning will have the same urge to continue through lean years that Favre has maintained...because Manning will make a beeline for the broadcast booth. He loves the limelight far more than Favre does.

[HarveyWallbangers]

It's nice to see positive stories after the media has mostly ripped him the last two years.

Favre wants wins, not records
By Larry Weisman, USA Today

Brett Favre looks at football records with the same disdain aficionados of mp3s and iPods hold for the vinyl ones: mere relics of the past, and oh-so-breakable.

Entering Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings, the Green Bay Packers quarterback needs one touchdown pass to break the NFL record of 420 he shares with Dan Marino and further burnish a 17-year career of streaks, peaks and unequaled achievements.

Talk about long-playing records: Favre is the NFL’s only three-time most valuable player (one award was shared). No quarterback has more victories (150). None has been more durable (260 consecutive games started, including the playoffs).

And there’s probably no one more excited about the Packers’ surprising 3-0 start that has put Green Bay - which missed the playoffs the last two years — atop its division, the NFC North.

“Here in the building, the record hasn’t been a deal,” Favre said. “I’m more pleased that we’re 3-0, that we’ve been productive on offense the last two weeks. This has been fun.”

He says emphatically that records — the personal kind — don’t matter much to him. “I was never about records. I wasn’t brought up that way.”

But then he goes on to describe a personal journey in which setting records, and piling up big statistics, once were important.

His late father, Irvin, coached him in high school and preferred the run to the pass. His son executed the plays faithfully. “My senior year I threw for 300 yards. Guys (now) have that in one game,” Favre said. “Did I complain about it? Sure, I did. Then I went to Southern Miss and played four years, and we never threw the ball, not like they do now. All my records have been broken.”

He acknowledges that he cherished them when he set them. But time wore away the grooves.

“When I left Southern Miss, I had every (school) passing record that you could hold. And for the first three or four years, I didn’t want them to be broken. That meant something to me,” he says. “And as time passed and records got broken, it meant less and less to me. And finally I figured if they forget me after all my records are gone, I didn’t do too well. It’s the things you don’t read in the box score that mean the most.”

So even though he has amassed stats like few other quarterbacks before him — stats that make him a certain first-ballot choice for the Pro Football Hall of Fame — Favre talks more about the need for him to be a good teammate and a veteran presence on the NFL’s youngest team. And about leadership. And undergoing the transition from young hellion to venerable maestro. And about winning.

“I never dreamt that a team I was quarterbacking would ever have a losing record and we went 4-12” in 2005, he said.

Being a winner again, he said, “means more” than piling up numbers.

For the Packers, Sunday’s game at Minnesota (1-2) is a chance to start a season 4-0 for the first time since 1998. Favre, who turns 38 on Oct. 10, has shown a quicker release of the ball this year, a little less recklessness and results that smack of the old (actually younger) Favre.

Last season, when the Packers were a team in transition with a new coach (Mike McCarthy) and several new players, the team struggled to a 4-8 start before closing with four victories. Favre ranked 13th in the NFC in passer rating (72.7 on the combined measure of four passing statistics that tops out at 158.3) and threw 18 touchdown passes and 18 interceptions. In 2005, he led the NFL with 29 interceptions.

This year’s 3-0 start has come against three playoff teams from 2006. Favre has six TD passes, two interceptions and a passer rating of 93.5, a mark he has exceeded over an entire season only once (2004) since 1996, the year of the Packers’ last Super Bowl title.

In the Packers’ win against the Chargers last Sunday, Favre threw three touchdown passes to tie Marino’s mark. With the verve of days gone by, he brought the team from behind, the lead changing hands on his 57-yard pass to Greg Jennings with 2:03 left to play.

“Throwing that touchdown at the end, everyone’s over there celebrating and cheering and congratulating me, and I said, ”Look, this will mean nothing if we don’t win this game.’ That’s what it’s all about,“ Favre said.

Eliminating mistakes, spreading the ball around to various receivers, igniting rallies. So far Favre has been as good as ever, maybe better.

”He looks like the MVP guy he was,“ says Vikings safety Darren Sharper, a teammate of Favre’s from 1997 to 2004. ”He looks like the quarterback making all the right reads, showing confidence in his receivers, putting the ball on the spot, making good decisions. You don’t see him making some of the throws that he previously made.“

McCarthy agrees that Favre has ”been very disciplined with the football. A big part of quarterback play, obviously, is decision-making. I think these last two weeks he’s been excellent with his decisions with the ball.“

Favre, the NFL’s oldest starting quarterback, is showing enough of the gunslinger mentality that made him a star to mesh with a new generation of Packers on a team whose players’ average age is 25.8.

”I know (Favre’s) got the gray hair, and he looks around the locker room and there’s not a lot in common (with other players), but if you could watch him interact for a day, I think everyone would have a clearer understanding of the uniqueness of him as a person and as a player,“ McCarthy said. ”I think deep down inside he will always be a kid. He loves to play. He’s a joy to coach.“

Records fall. It’s a function of time and durability. Marino threw 420 TD passes in 17 seasons with the Miami Dolphins and played in 242 games, starting 240. Favre will pass him in starts on Sunday.

Marino once started 95 consecutive games but injuries cost him 11 games in 1993, three in 1996 and five in 1999, after which he retired. Favre hasn’t left the Packers lineup since entering it in 1992. With his 241st consecutive start, he would have the second-longest recorded streak among NFL players. Former Minnesota lineman Jim Marshall holds the record at 270.

“For him to be able to get through his entire career without missing a football game to me is nothing short of miraculous,” said Troy Aikman, who quarterbacked the Dallas Cowboys to three Super Bowl victories and entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

“To do that and to play at the level he has been able to play at for as long as what he has, that’s really how you define greatness,” Aikman said. “The (TD passing) record is not a real big deal. But in order to break (it), what you have to do to get there is pretty special.”

Records fall. That might not mean much to Aikman, though Marino sounds a bit wistful as Favre approaches the TD mark. If Favre moves past him, “it’s not going to make me happy,” Marino says. “But that’s part of life.”

In his life after football — like Aikman, Marino gabs about the game on television — records matter.

“When you’re playing, it’s really about getting to the playoffs and wanting to win the Super Bowl,” Marino said. “But then you look back at what you accomplished in your career, and it’s something you’re proud of.”

Marino went to one Super Bowl and lost. Favre’s Packers won after the 1996 season and returned the next year but lost. Records fall, championships endure.

“That will always be there,” Favre saidof winning the NFL title. “I never thought about records or MVPs. I thought it would be nice to dress out and the Super Bowl would be awesome.”

Dress out? That almost didn’t happen.

Favre joined the Packers in 1992, acquired from the Atlanta Falcons for a first-round draft pick after a disastrous rookie season on the bench. He partied and paid little mind to his job.

“Out of shape, drinking, couldn’t run the scout team. I thought we had drafted a bust,” says Ken Herock, then the Falcons’ director of player personnel.

Had Mike Tomczak not held out for more money when the Packers began training camp, Favre would have been the No. 3 quarterback.

Instead, he backed up often-injured Don Majkowski and replaced him in the first quarter of the third game of the season, when Majkowski sprained an ankle. Favre led the Packers to a 24-23 comeback victory, throwing a 35-yard TD pass with 13 seconds left in the game.

He became the starter a week later — on Sept. 27, 1992 — and has never let go of the job. Not through a separated shoulder, ankle sprains, knee sprains, thumb sprains and breaks, elbow tendinitis, bone chips in his ankle. Not through a stay in 1996 at a rehab clinic to kick a dependency on a prescription painkiller. Not through the death of his father the day before a Monday night game in 2003. Not through wife Deanna’s bout with breast cancer in late 2004 and the spring of 2005 or damage Hurricane Katrina did to his family’s home in Kiln, Miss., in 2005.

“There were so many things he had to overcome,” said Steve Mariucci, the Packers’ quarterbacks coach from 1992 to 1995 and a close friend of Favre’s. “He had to suck it up and play anyway, practice anyway. It was amazing. Yes, he was a little bit lucky not to have that major injury. But he probably stayed in some games that others would not have played in.”

Favre has done it with flair and often with a gambler’s recklessness, to the point that he’s also closing in on an unwelcomed record for quarterbacks.

He’s three interceptions short of breaking George Blanda’s all-time mark of 277, set during a career that ran from 1949 to 1975. In 2002, Favre threw six interceptions in a playoff game, then announced “it didn’t dent my armor.” He always has been willing to take the consequences of trying to get the ball to well-covered receivers.

“He can wow you with a touchdown pass that gets 4 feet off the ground from the 19-yard line,” says Sterling Sharpe, who caught 300 passes from Favre over three seasons (1992-94). “He can wow you with a throw over his shoulder that’s intercepted. Very rarely do you run into a guy who can wow you on two separate throws, one positive and one negative.”

Favre’s departure from football isn’t imminent, but he knows it’s coming.

“We’ve been talking about his retirement for almost as long as he’s been playing,” Aikman said, referring to Favre’s Hamlet-like internal argument each recent offseason over whether to walk away.

“I’m proud here that I put up the numbers, but the most important thing is that I played the game the way it’s supposed to be played. I busted my ass every play and never gave up and was, I like to think, a good teammate,” Favre said.

“I will never be better than Dan Marino or Joe Montana. All those guys I’ve played against — Aikman, (Jim) Kelly, Warren Moon, (John) Elway — I’m just fortunate to be thought of as one of the best.”

He left out one name: Peyton Manning. The Indianapolis Colts quarterback, in his 10th season, has 280 TD passes and has started 145 consecutive regular-season games. If he stays healthy and productive, he’ll likely surpass the marks Favre is about to take from Marino.

“Every record, whatever it may be, you’re just holding on to it for a brief time,” Favre said. “That’s why they have records — so the next guy can break them.”

[Packnut]

Harrison

I'm very anxious to see how Manning plays without Harrison when his time is up.

[MadtownPacker]

ESPN has a whole section on him

[mraynrand]

These articles always give me a knot in my gut. Look, Favre is incredibly tough. But he must be other things too - he has to have more flexibility than others. He has these incredibly large hands and feet - (recall the story that he can pick up a baseball with his foot) - having the large hand allowed him to play through a severely sprained thumb (1999) and a broken thumb (2003). That 2003 thumb injury was absurd. Try this at home - tape your thumb so you can't bend the final (distal) joint and try to throw a football. It's almost impossible to do. Favre's 6'4" but he's abnormal. I can barely palm a basket ball, but I can't throw an accurate football pass with my thumb taped,and I doubt most, if not all NFL QBs are the same . Favre also does thing other QBs can't do - avoiding the sack and then instintively moving away from contact while/after throwing. He's also been lucky in a sense (Knock on wood for the thousandth time) because some injuries you just can't play through and he hasn't gotten those. Also, he's been so damn good that Favre injured is way better than the backup. And a guy like Holmgren WOULD sit him for the healthy backup if he thought the backup could play better (Note that Favre was pulled in 1995 in the metrodome, even though he could still play, because he was throwing high due to the ankle sprain). (Rhodes and Sherman were way too intimidated to sit him for a backup. Rhodes probably should have sat him before the Seattle game in 1999 and Sherman probably could have sat him a couple of times as well)

Finally, how many of you have this 'impending doom' feeling? I get it from time to time. I want Favre to walk away with the streak intact. I thought for sure he was gone after the Washington Redskins game in 2002, but impossibly, he wasn't. Favre's like the last living mythical sports figure - he may lose games, he may play badly from time to time, but he has the image of the un-vanquished - I don't want to see anyone but Favre control his final fate.

[Packnut]

Favre

These articles always give me a knot in my gut. Look, Favre is incredibly tough. But he must be other things too - he has to have more flexibility than others. He has these incredibly large hands and feet - (recall the story that he can pick up a baseball with his foot) - having the large hand allowed him to play through a severely sprained thumb (1999) and a broken thumb (2003). That 2003 thumb injury was absurd. Try this at home - tape your thumb so you can't bend the final (distal) joint and try to throw a football. It's almost impossible to do. Favre's 6'4" but he's abnormal. I can barely palm a basket ball, but I can't throw an accurate football pass with my thumb taped,and I doubt most, if not all NFL QBs are the same . Favre also does thing other QBs can't do - avoiding the sack and then instintively moving away from contact while/after throwing. He's also been lucky in a sense (Knock on wood for the thousandth time) because some injuries you just can't play through and he hasn't gotten those. Also, he's been so damn good that Favre injured is way better than the backup. And a guy like Holmgren WOULD sit him for the healthy backup if he thought the backup could play better (Note that Favre was pulled in 1995 in the metrodome, even though he could still play, because he was throwing high due to the ankle sprain). (Rhodes and Sherman were way too intimidated to sit him for a backup. Rhodes probably should have sat him before the Seattle game in 1999 and Sherman probably could have sat him a couple of times as well)

Finally, how many of you have this 'impending doom' feeling? I get it from time to time. I want Favre to walk away with the streak intact. I thought for sure he was gone after the Washington Redskins game in 2002, but impossibly, he wasn't. Favre's like the last living mythical sports figure - he may lose games, he may play badly from time to time, but he has the image of the un-vanquished - I don't want to see anyone but Favre control his final fate.

Yeah, I worry about the law of averages too. His streak is un-believable.

[Rastak]

Former Viking Bob Lurtsema, who I believe own's Viking Update had this article on Scout.com. It seems he's a huge Favre fan......

Former Vikings defensive lineman Bob Lurtsema had high praise for Brett Favre as the quarterback approaches two records Sunday against the Vikings. Plus, find out how the Vikings’ defenders are approaching the game, as well as Lurtsema’s thoughts on Minnesota’s rushing and passing offense.

VU: I know you love the way Brett Favre plays. Do you have any favorite Favre moments as he comes to two records, the touchdowns and the interceptions?

BL: I hope he sets both of them. That would be an unbelievable experience to witness if the guy breaks George Blanda’s record. I believe he’s at 275 and it’s 277, so that would tie it and then, of course, the touchdowns to break Dan Marino’s record. They were doing a survey on KFAN the other day and I almost called because they were saying Joe Montana is No. 1 and Brett Favre is No. 2. Let me tell you something, Brett Favre is so far ahead of everyone else, there’s no one even close to him. No. 1, he didn’t have a good supporting cast all the time and then to start that many consecutive games – and you have to remember, how many quarterbacks, not only injuries but whether they played good or bad – haven’t been benched or traded, and he’s playing with the same club.

VU: One of the things I know they talked about in that informal poll was how these polls are always skewed to the modern-day player. But now you’re telling me when you go back to the 1950s, ’60 and ‘70s, if you eliminate from 1985 on, who would you say was the best quarterback in those earlier days?

BL: Just to have the job as long as I mentioned before, for me to go back there and I played against a lot of the Hall of Famers, the thing that we always had was that Sonny Jurgensen, Joe Namath, they got rid of that ball so fast that you can’t sack those guys. If you look at it like that, they also had decent ratings. John Elway, they say how great he was, but he had nine out of 10 years where he was in the 70s or lower as far as how his rating goes. Now, going back to Favre, I don’t want to compare him to the old guys. I’ve never seen a quarterback in all the years I played with the excitement and the energy, like a little kid, that is contagious. That is totally contagious to your team. Of course, all the fans pick up on it as well, but that’s not why he’s doing it. He’s just like a little kid. I talked to Todd Bouman because Todd was down there and he said he was like a third-grader. Come Thursday, he was so excited for the game on Sunday. He plays it because it’s a kid’s game and he hasn’t grown up yet. His energy is there, and that’s what I like about it because that rubs off on the defensive players. For all those that wanted to get rid of him two years ago, you know I went on record with you in the paper and I did this on a few television shows, I’d take him all day long. There was nothing wrong with Brett Favre a couple years ago. The thing of it is, when he’s down by two touchdowns with seven minutes to go, there is only one way he can win. He’ll force that pass because he doesn’t care if he loses by 28 or 14, it’s a loss. He knows what he has to do to give his team an opportunity to win. A lot of quarterbacks haven’t got the balls to do that, they’re worried about their stats and this and that.

VU: Bringing it back to the Vikings, it seems like if they’ve got a little lead they are so intent on just preserving those few points rather than being aggressive. What do you think of how aggressive or unaggressive they have become?

BL: Well, you have no go-to guy. The go-to guy you have is Adrian Peterson. I know Brad Childress said he went off on the last drive because of pass protection. I look at it that you want to be explosive and he’s your most explosive player. If he’s your most explosive player and they’re running a blitz or something, that just comes down to a hot call where they’re hitting him right away out of the backfield. Dump right away. Brad Childress is no dummy, but there is nobody that you can go to, and so far this year Tarvaris Jackson has missed some wide-open receivers. If he’s throwing to a spot, he’s throwing out of bounds and he doesn’t give the player an opportunity to make a big play. He’s so far away right now from being a legitimate big play maker. I think his strength might be a 15-yard pass over the middle, but you can’t go deep with him.

VU: Are the receivers open enough from what you see?

BL: From what I’ve seen so far, there isn’t a lot of great separation. But if you’re disciplined on your routes, whether it’s 7 yards or 10 yards, if they’re going to take it away on that route, a receiver has got to be able to make an adjustment. If he knows his route is taken away at 10 yards, run it at 8 yards, but he’s got to know he’s on the same page as the quarterback, and the quarterback has got to know the adjustments. Bobby Wade can find the open spot. He can set in the soft spot. He can find it with his experience. Now you’ve got to find it on the other end where you’re throwing him the ball, to know that Wade is going to make that adjustment.

VU: I asked Brad Childress about what his plan for the running backs is once Chester Taylor comes back and he said Taylor is the starter again when he comes back healthy and they’ll spit carries. It’s still the same plan that he had at the beginning of the year. Do you think Adrian has shown enough to alter from that plan?

BL: The thing that Coach Childress is wisely doing is he’s not tipping his hand. He knows now how well Adrian Peterson bounced back after a game – what his strengths and weaknesses are. It’s actually a plus because he’s had a chance to see more of Adrian. Then when they come back in, they’ll alternate the two. Like with Dallas and Marion Barber and Julius Jones, they’ll keep them in for a series and if they’re going right, they’ll keep them in. That gives a coach a little more of a positive decision-making chance. If something is wrong with one of them, you run the other one more. It really helps. I think if you look at how they are doing it down in Dallas, you’re going to understand that having two of them is going to be a tremendous plus. It was basically unfair to the offense to have just one man in the backfield and not even having Tony Richardson blocking. You just lost your three combos, and when you do not have a seasoned quarterback, you’ve got to have a running game. We said that at the beginning of the season. The only thing that is going to help Tarvaris Jackson mature is a good running game.

VU: From your talks with defenders, what is their mentality about going up against Green Bay in general and then Favre on Sunday?

BL: The defense is really, really stoked for this game because it’s always fun to go against the best, and Brett Favre is the best. And it’s always fun when the best in the league is your No. 1 rivalry. There is no better rivalry than the Packers and the Vikings. All the defensive linemen were saying, ‘Lurtz, two plays and we’re 3-0.’ That’s what they’re feeding off, and it’s true. You get a bad official’s call in Kansas City and you win that game and then the three inches on that field goal against Detroit and you win that one. So, two plays, 3-0.

VU: When you look at what Favre will probably do and what teams have done to this defense for the past year in spreading them out, what’s the key to combating that?

BL: Pass rush.

VU: Even on Favre?

BL: You’ve got to have the outside force. I’m getting a kick out of what Antoine Winfield is saying. He wants to go one-on-one with Donald Driver. I like that. That’s the competitive spirit you like to hear. Nobody has really challenged him like that and if anyone can handle it, it is Winfield because we’re getting beat with the corners and we’re young back there. You’ve got Sharper back there, but overall in the nickel and dime package, they’re young.


Bob Lurtsema was a 12-year veteran defensive lineman in the NFL, playing with the Baltimore Colts, New York Giants, Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks, and the longtime publisher of Viking Update. He joins VikingUpdate.com for a

[HarveyWallbangers]

Favre's 6'4" but he's abnormal.

Actually, he's only 6'2", but he does have large hands. Not sure about the feet.


They had an exhibit at the Packers Hall of Fame (the old one). It was the outline of Favre's hand on a ball, so you could compare your hand size to his. They were enormous. I know his hands are about two inches longer than Daunte Culpepper, and Daunte is a couple of inches taller.

[mraynrand]

"The thing of it is, when he’s down by two touchdowns with seven minutes to go, there is only one way he can win. He’ll force that pass because he doesn’t care if he loses by 28 or 14, it’s a loss."


What he said. This is extremely important when looking at games like the playoff loss at St. Louis. Favre played verywell in that game, avoiding sacks, getting the ball out under pressure, playing well despite a terrible offensive line performance in protection and in the run game. he was responsible for 1 to 1.5 of the first three INTs he threw. There were so many mistakes by others, but Favre got blamed for it all. Why? Mainly because he kept slinging the ball after being down by four scores with a quarter to go (don't even think of bringing up Lincoln) - and because fans - especially the casual ignorant watchers - tend to lump the blame on the QB. So he threw three more picks. So what?

[mraynrand]

Favre's 6'4" but he's abnormal.

Actually, he's only 6'2", but he does have large hands. Not sure about the feet.


They had an exhibit at the Packers Hall of Fame (the old one). It was the outline of Favre's hand on a ball, so you could compare your hand size to his. They were enormous. I know his hands are about two inches longer than Daunte Culpepper, and Daunte is a couple of inches taller.

I've seen him listed as 6'4." I wonder what the truth is. Of course, we all shrink a bit as we age....

[The Leaper]

Re: Harrison

I'm very anxious to see how Manning plays without Harrison when his time is up.

I'm anxious to see him without a great OL. Marino at one point started 95 consecutive games...then his supporting cast faltered and he wound up injured all the time despite his amazingly fast release.

All it takes is one hit, and Manning's streak comes to an end. He needs roughly 100 more games to catch Favre once Favre eventually does hang it up...or over 6 more years of consecutive starts as his body begins to notably decline.

I just don't see Manning continuing to play until he is 38 years old...which is what he will have to do to break Favre's record by the time Brett is done. I don't think he has the physical ability to do so...Favre is a freak of nature in that regard. Manning also is a smart guy...he'll move to the TV side of the game and keep pulling down coin without more wear and tear on his body. He's got a title...he doesn't have to push himself like Marino/Elway did late in their careers.

Manning may pass Favre in TD passes, yardage, wins, etc. He can reach most of those marks in less than five years after Favre's retirement if the Colts remain strong. I doubt he will pass him in terms of consecutive starts.