Come on, we all knew he wasn’t going to retire. We just didn’t know Brett Favre would sign with the Green Bay Packers’ hated rival, the Minnesota Vikings. After spending 16 seasons and breaking countless records with the famed Wisconsin team, Favre will face them for the first time tonight. Naturally the NFL made it a Monday Night Football event.
This might be the only time in history that Cheeseheads cheer for a dude in a Vikings’ uniform.
Favre, who played most of his career with the Packers and took them to two Super Bowls (winning one), will play his old team in Minnesota. The game has added intrigue, however, since its outcome will have an important effect on the standings. The Favre-led Vikings stand atop the NFC North division with a 3-0 record, while the Packers are second at 2-1. If they beat Favre & Co. tonight, it’ll be a tie at No. 1.
The truly impressive aspect of tonight’s game is Favre himself, who turns 40 on Saturday. So far he’s retired twice only to come back the very next season, making tonight his 273rd straight start. That is, by the way, the all-time record. He also holds the quarterback record for the most all-time wins.
People keep telling him he’s too old and that he’s just doing it for the attention, but here he is atop the division having made yet another team that much better. In fact, this is the first 3-0 start for the Vikings in half a dozen years. Guess it goes to show that heart can truly trump age.
Favre — the only player to win the MVP award three consecutive years — has just one more feather he can add to his cap. This second-round draft pick (yeah, I said second round) has beaten every single NFL team but one, and that of course would be the Green Bay Packers. The quarterback, who still gives back to Wisconsin through the Brett Favre Fourward Foundation, will have his chance tonight.
Image by Mendreola courtesy of Flickr.
Updated Oct. 6
ESPN called the game Favre-leous as the famed quarterback threw three touchdowns for a 30-23 win over his former team. The Favre-led Vikings are now undefeated at 4-0. Congratulations Brett!
