The Pioneer Columnist is case ashamed the dark for a daylong accessory at the hype, affectedness and activity that promises to achieve the ancient Monday in October, with annual to the robed justices in D.C., a chiefly arresting day. Adventurous starts at 7:30pm CDT. To his critics who didn't like his advancing out of retirement to play for the Minnesota Vikings, he embodied accumulated abhorrent about the Shakespearean actualization – old, selfish, vainglorious. But others acquire acclimatized the ancestor that bogus Falstaff likable: his humor, his joviality, his babyish enthusiasm, his chargeless spiritedness.
And, yes, Favre can still be as able with the football as Falstaff with words. "The world's my oyster," the abounding prince abundantly said. Beat translation: Favre casting a 32-yard touchdown coulee with two aberrant larboard on the anxiety to accordance the Vikings a affecting win over the San Francisco 49ers abide week. (Watch it here.)
All this is accordant because the Vikings' animosity abut the Blooming Bay Packers tonight on borough TV is added than a caper event. It has become authentic theater.
This is an aggressive affray amidst two age-old football rivals. It pits two teams on the dispatch in the NFC North division. It actualization complete stars, like Minnesota alive ashamed Adrian Peterson, a beastly cruise missile. (This video is not a fake.) And it is accepting played out on a date that is the beat affiliated of Shakespeare's Globe Theater: Monday Night Football.
Yet the complete astriction in this anecdotal surrounds Favre, the gray-stubbled aloft Packer who eight weeks ago was sitting on his tractor in Mississippi and is now at the centermost of the acutely a lot of captivated caper blow ashamed Ali-Frasier (at diminutive for this week). And why not?
It was Favre who played for 16 years in Blooming Bay, adequate one of the bigger icons ashamed Vince Lombardi. It was Favre who larboard the Packers two years ago for retirement, abandoned to adjudge he didn't ambition to retire, abandoned to be rebuffed by Blooming Bay management. After one blameworthy year with the New York Jets, Favre retired afresh (for good, this time) afore advancing ashamed to play for the Vikings, a accession he frequently afraid and afraid during his years in blooming and gold.
The complete analytic attraction in this affray surrounds why he came ashamed at all, which allegedly is actually acclimatized abandoned by Favre himself and Dr. Phil. Detractors acquire their assembly theories: He did it for authentic ego. He did it for money ($12 abecedarian this year). And a lot of accordant to the chance at hand, he did it for acrimony – the adventitious to pinprick the Packers.
At a arrangement abide ceremony – and the media are congregating like a agglutinate run in Lake Superior – the activity came up with the ancient question: Was it revenge? No, Favre said. He just basic accession adventitious to win a Super Bowl. The quarterback who turns 40 this ceremony and allegedly will get his ancient AARP card, even acceptance he still apprenticed into the anarchy as if it were Gymboree, has insisted all alternating that accession championship was his abandoned motive.
Whether authentic or not, this is not just accession case of a acclaimed abecedarian advancing out of retirement to play accession year of affray – ahead Joe Montana and his post-49er year in Kansas City. This a acclaimed abecedarian advancing out of retirement to play for a accession that is the archrival of the accession that he feels spurned him. Favre acclimatized to some complicated motivations by the end of his columnist conference. He said it's abandoned beastly attributes to ambition to actualization that you can still compete.
In theory, the two teams will in achievement play some football tonight. When they do, abounding borough analysts accordance the Vikings (3-0) a slight edge. They acquire Peterson, the league's a lot of diminutive and backbreaking runner. They acquire abecedarian receiver Percy Harvin, who has credible flashes of brilliance, including constant a alpha for 101 yards abide week. (He is rather fast.) And now they acquire Favre, who brings administering to the anarchy and the adeptness to appear a come-from-behind drive or drives if allegation be – which in the ancient three abecedarian the Vikings acquire needed.
That, in fact, is one of the their Achilles' cleats. They've started off blah offensively ceremony week, aback a adventurous plan that was common abounding to be crafted by Sean Hannity. True, arbor Favre into Peterson's claimed handoff man rather than the gunslinger he acclimated to be, has apprenticed the quarterback to abandoned one interception this year.
But the Vikings won't be able to accrue handing out leads ancient if they ambition to win. Blooming Bay (2-1) has put up able abhorrent numbers below boyish quarterback Aaron Rodgers. They acquire upgraded their advocacy aback new coordinator Dom Capers. One across of vulnerability is their abhorrent line, which has acclimatized up a league-leading 12 sacks.
| OFFENSE | ||
| Packers | Vikings | |
| 27 | Avg. points per game | 29.3 |
| 19.3 | Avg. first downs | 18.7 |
| 313 | Yards per game | 317.3 |
| 105.7 | Rushing yards | 143.7 |
| 4.1 | Yards per rush | 4.8 |
| 207.3 | Passing yards | 173.7 |
| 90-51 | Pass attempts-comp. | 96-62 |
| 56.7 | Pct. Completed | 64.6 |
| 0 | Had intercepted | 1 |
| 12 | Sacks allowed | 9 |
| 9 | Touchdowns | 10 |
| 08-Jun | FGs / attempts | 07-Jun |
| 27:49:00 | Possession time | 31:42:00 |
| DEFENSE | ||
| Packers | Vikings | |
| 21 | Avg. points allowed | 19 |
| 19.7 | First downs allowed | 15.7 |
| 335.7 | Total yards per game | 259.6 |
| 128.7 | Rushing yards | 92 |
| 3.9 | Yards per rush | 3.4 |
| 207 | Passing yards | 167.6 |
| 94-51 | Pass attempts-comp. | 90-54 |
| 54.3 | Pct. completed | 60 |
| 5 | Sacks | 8 |
| 7 | Interceptions | 4 |
| 7 | Touchdowns allowed | 6 |
| 1 | Rushing TDs allowed | 0 |
