I looked at the stats over lunch on Monday and almost choked on a leftover turkey sandwich.
Hey, I knew Brett Favre was doing well this season. Especially against the Packers. You couldn’t live within screaming distance of a Green Bay fan and not know that.
I just didn’t realize he was doing this well. As in historically well. And when you’re as historic as Favre, that’s saying something.
Before we go any further, let’s be clear. This isn’t about Favre vs. Aaron Rodgers (though maybe someone, someday will finally write something about that overlooked story). This is about Favre only, merely an appreciation of the logic-defying season he’s wrangling up. Because through 11 games, No. 4’s numbers will make you Green (and Gold) with envy.
Ten wins, 24 touchdowns and 2,874 yards. A quarterback rating of 112.1. And the real shocker: a measly three interceptions.
Brett Favre with only three interceptions? That’s like Larry King with only three ex-wives. Tiger Woods with only three excuses. Jon & Kate with only three kids. Or Jon with only three women on the side.
That’s when it dawned on me. We’re witnessing the greatest season of one of the NFL’s greatest quarterbacks. But more than that, we’re witnessing it through a decidedly purple haze.
Yes, Packers fans, Brett saved his best for … Minnesota.
Don’t believe me? Look at the man’s résumé. Never has his passer rating been this high or his interception rate been this low. Take away Favre’s rookie season in Atlanta, when he threw just five passes (two of which were picked off), and the fewest number of interceptions he’s thrown is 13. Moreover, in two of his three 13-pick seasons, he led his team to the Super Bowl.
Uh oh. Favre in the Super Bowl with the Vikings? Didn’t I read that on a Mayan calendar somewhere?
Actually, never mind that, because there’s a question more pressing than the end of the world, and it’s this: Why now? Why, at the age of 40, and with enough graybeard to do a Just For Men commercial, is he contending for a fourth MVP award?
Maybe he’s already told us.
Six wins ago, Favre made this bold proclamation about his Vikings: “Physically and from a talent level, this is the best team I’ve ever been on.” Which prompted anyone associated with the 1996 Packers to boldly proclaim Favre an idiot.
Those Packers alumni were right to do so. They had, after all, won a Super Bowl. When Favre made his statement, he’d only won five games.
But now the Vikings are 10-1 and most definitely in the Super Bowl conversation. And maybe they are the most talented team Favre’s ever played on. And maybe that’s exactly why he’s playing so well.
He has a running game to lean on. He has an offensive line protecting him better than Kevlar underwear. He has a defense that can build leads and hold them, meaning Favre doesn’t have to try gunslinging his way back into games (and into those interceptions). He’s also wiser, and probably more motivated, than he’s ever been in his storied career.
Add it all up and it sounds like a pretty plausible recipe for a quarterback’s success. Perhaps the most success of his life.
Of course, this could all change in a hurry. Anyone who’s paid the slightest attention to Favre through the years can tell you that. He’s got five games left in the regular season and could go from three interceptions to 13 in about two of them. He could take one good hit from a linebacker and get the gray knocked off his beard. His shoulder could suddenly cry uncle. Or his leg. Or any of his countless joints or bones or ligaments. This is, after all, the NFL.
Moreover, you can argue that none of Favre’s numbers will matter this season unless he takes the Vikings to the Super Bowl and wins it. And since Favre won a Lombardi Trophy in 1996, no season can be better than that one unless it also includes a Lombardi Trophy. Same goes for the “best team” he’s ever been on.
But now, all of those contingencies seem quite plausible. As December’s cold engulfs those NFL players whose owners are too cruel to build them a domed stadium, Favre and his fans can realistically believe that he could do the unthinkable.
He can be the Moses of Minnesota, leading the Vikings to the Promised Land, and declare it the best season of his life. You just wonder how he’d word it in his Hall of Fame speech.
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