11/05/24
October 06, 2009
Favre takes it to the Packers: Vikings win 30-23: Brett Favre proved to the Green Bay Packers he has plenty of fire left inside, and in his right arm. Favre's first game against his former team was all fun for the Minnesota Vikings and all frustration for the Packers, as the graying quarterback kept his cool and connected for three touchdown passes and 271 yards in a 30-23 victory on Monday night
of course that should be "The Vikes are 4-0 and I'm loving it"
posted by dviking at 03:31 AM on October 06, 2009
Living it works too.
posted by outonleave at 05:08 AM on October 06, 2009
FavreFilter.
posted by JJ at 07:32 AM on October 06, 2009
I've never known what to think of Brad Childress, and lots of people were quick to slam him with the way the Favre signing went, but at this point, it sure looks like he's getting more out his roster than Wade Phillips or Norv Turner are getting out of theirs.
It's a special moment in the Twin cities, no matter what the outcome of today's baseball game is. I can feel the electricity halfway across the country. These moments of confluence of events don't happen all that often.
posted by beaverboard at 07:47 AM on October 06, 2009
While I'm sure there will still be some Favre haters...
Just to make it clear, it wasn't me that used the term 'hater'.
Now that that's out of the way, that was one hell of a game last night. Favre put on a great showing against his former team, throwing for 3 TD's and no turnovers. Aaron Rodgers on the other hand, was harrassed all night by Jared Alled and the Vikings D.
Rodgers may have thrown for over 380 yards and 2 TD's but he was never comfortable in the pocket and that needs to be credited to the Vikings, who pressured Rodgers all night long.
I'm glad that this game is out of the way so that we can resume to just watching football although I'll be the first to admit that I got caught up in the whole Brett Favre mini-series that was going on before the game ever got started. Favre showed the Packers that he still has 'it', Brad Childress was able to prove all the naysayers wrong in his pursuit of Favre in the off season and the Vikings defense was nothing to laugh at and they're now 4-0.
All in all, it's a great thing to have football to watch and considering I DVR'd the game last night, I'll get to watch the rest of the game that I fell asleep on.
Damn responsibilites.
posted by BornIcon at 08:28 AM on October 06, 2009
The old man threw it as well as he ever has last night, and Jared Allen is a monster. A pedestrian evening for Peterson mattered not.
Minnesota will have to be reckoned with in the NFC this year.
posted by mjkredliner at 09:15 AM on October 06, 2009
A pedestrian evening for Peterson mattered not.
Someone seems to be channeling Yoda..or is it, channeling Yoda someone seems to be?
posted by BornIcon at 09:24 AM on October 06, 2009
Someone seems to be channeling Yoda..or is it, channeling Yoda someone seems to be?
Not if anything to say about it I have.
posted by mjkredliner at 09:34 AM on October 06, 2009
I could barely watch the game because you would think Favre is the only player on the field doing anything. Minnesota's first drive was run, run, run, then Favre threw a TD when they were on the one yard line. Oh, the carrying on after that was too much to bear.
posted by bperk at 10:00 AM on October 06, 2009
I though it was great to see Favre for the second week in a row look like the hall of famer he is. Although Peterson had very small yardage, it should not be overlooked that because of his presence, the defense constantly had to first think run, and because they geared up to stop it, Favre's job was much easier. It also helps the offensive line of Minnesota pass block better because the defense cannot sell out the run to rush the passer. This really shows how the running threat of Peterson, combined with the arm and experience of Favre can really cause a defense problems.
I must say regardless of how Childress is looking good for signing Favre, his coaching performance last night was dismall. He almost cost the Vikes the game. First he blew a challenge that at the time was critical due to his indecision. Second when there was about 7 minutes to go in the game and the Vikes had a 16 point lead, he went away from a defensive scheme that was killing Rodgers and sold out for a third down blitz that was easily read and opened up the middle for a big gainer. The entire last 7 minutes were of a defense giving up the field in a prevent scheme that almost lost the game. They looked liked the were trying not to loose, in a game that was clearly well in had. Bad coaching. Also when the Vikes had the ball they tried that 3rd down long pass which was relatively safe but it allowed the Packers an extra 40 seconds, which at the very end of the game could have been enough time had they recovered the onside kick to win the game. I think they were all potentially critical coaching mistakes.
Favre proved again he may be the missing piece for the Vikings since it was clear that the Pack had stopped Peterson all night. Without Favre this is a game the Vikings would have lost. As was the game last week. It is pretty safe to say the aquisition of Favre has clearly resulted in the turning of two losses over the last two weeks into two wins. That is the Favre difference.
posted by Atheist at 10:46 AM on October 06, 2009
OK, ESPN ... we get it. You have a massive man-crush on the old man. But your every-other-second cutaways to get his reaction to every f***ing play made the game unwatchable, literally. You would think Jesus Christ was out there in sandals. I heard the term "40 on Saturday" a record 6,494 times.
posted by smithnyiu at 11:13 AM on October 06, 2009
Brett Favre did a great job of shutting up his critics Monday night. But man did ESPN's broadcast team go overboard about him. Every 30 seconds, they were either praising him or cutting to a shot of him. Did you know that he's just having fun out there? Favre should think about getting a restraining order against Jon Gruden. He's going to wake up one morning and see Chucky looming over his bed.
posted by rcade at 12:03 PM on October 06, 2009
1/40 posts on the front page is on Brett Favre. I know we talked about him setting the record and all but now that this game and the record are set, I doubt he'll be as much a topic of conversation. That is, until he either breaks the streak, wins the superbowl or falls apart.
posted by dfleming at 12:29 PM on October 06, 2009
Or has a bowel movement, I mean.
posted by dfleming at 12:31 PM on October 06, 2009
I forgot to watch this, thank god. ESPN is a joke, but the other networks are not much better. Especially Fox-- and especially Joe Buck and Daryl whats his name.
posted by The_Special_Juan at 01:02 PM on October 06, 2009
We've got about 4 weeks until Favre comes back to Lambeau and this whole thing starts over again. And if the Vikings beat the Rams next week (and they really ought to), we'll hear about how it is Favre's first 5-0 start in his career. It won't end. The fact that he is now on my favorite team doesn't make me any less sick of the media's worship of him. When I watch, I turn the TV sound down and listen to the radio broadcast, partly because Paul Allen is awesome, but also because the TV guys just can't help but join in the Favre worship. Last week, for example, the final play was the TV guys going on and on about Favre, and glossing over what an awesome catch it was by Greg Lewis.
To be fair, I do like that he helps the Vikings win games, though I hope he doesn't repeat his usual playoff performance.
posted by TheQatarian at 01:10 PM on October 06, 2009
More proof that Mike McCarthy is a dumba**. He didn't think the guy was needed anymore for them to be a winning team. Yet he can't figure out how to stop the guy from winning against him.
posted by Underdog at 01:11 PM on October 06, 2009
oh and I knew I would get sick real fast of hearing them tell us about how wonderful Brett Favre is.
Just glad John Madden wasn't in that booth too!
posted by Underdog at 01:12 PM on October 06, 2009
"To be fair, I do like that he helps the Vikings win games, though I hope he doesn't repeat his usual playoff performance."
Regardless of his usual playoff performance, the thing is, he is usually in the playoffs. Frankly without Favre the Vikes would be 2 and 2 instead of 4 and 0. So to regardless of whether or not they win the Superbowl and no matter what he does in the playoffs, most likely they will be there in big part because of him. Despite the talent on that team. Last night a 2 and 2 team, shut down Adrian Peterson, moved the ball up and down the field, scored plenty of points and even though they turned the ball over a couple of times was right there at the end of the game with a chance to win. The Vikings still seem a little overated to me and in desperate need of Favre.
posted by Atheist at 01:36 PM on October 06, 2009
Rodgers, however, was pressured all night, and was sacked 8 times, one of them for a safety!
Which is really the problem. Favre, as he admitted himself, wasn't touched all night. Any decent quarterback will pick a defense apart with that kind of time, and he's better than decent.
I think you need to put a 40 year old quarterback on his ass as much as possible.
I forgot to watch this, thank god. ESPN is a joke
Embarrassing display by espn. But for every fan that's sick of the hero worship, there's probably 5 that are eating it up.
posted by justgary at 02:17 PM on October 06, 2009
Every 30 seconds, they were either praising him or cutting to a shot of him.
Exactly what I expected, and why I was true to my word in the signing thread months ago and did not watch the game.
posted by scully at 02:24 PM on October 06, 2009
The Vikings still seem a little overated to me and in desperate need of Favre.
They've had the No. 1 run defense three years in a row and the top running back. If that's desperation, I wish the Cowboys were in such desperate straits.
Those of you who didn't watch missed a pretty good game.
posted by rcade at 02:32 PM on October 06, 2009
Favre should think about getting a restraining order against Jon Gruden.
Yeah, what is it about Farverer and former Raiders coaches?
posted by THX-1138 at 02:46 PM on October 06, 2009
Yeah, what is it about Farverer and former Raiders coaches?
I have no idea. I know Gruden tried to get Favre to come to Tampa Bay when he was coach. Gruden is in love with all the old geezers. Jerry Rice and Tim Brown ended up in Tampa Bay way, way, way past their primes.
posted by bperk at 02:56 PM on October 06, 2009
"They've had the No. 1 run defense three years in a row and the top running back. If that's desperation, I wish the Cowboys were in such desperate straits. "
Well that may be true but so far this year they have had close games with no so great teams. Last night Rogers was pressured but he also moved the ball very quickly down the field on several occaisions and threw for almost 400 yards. The Pack turned the ball over a couple of times and failed to score in the red zone on a couple of occasions. The Viking defense gave up a lot of yards. I hope they do well this year, especially because they took the chance with Favre but frankly I think they have a lot of work to do in order to be competitive with the top teams. They should have been able to put the game away last night and wound up just hanging on at the end. Not a good sign for a team that expects to be a contender for the Superbowl.
posted by Atheist at 03:20 PM on October 06, 2009
And yet, they're 4-0.
posted by BornIcon at 03:22 PM on October 06, 2009
Well that may be true but so far this year they have had close games with no so great teams. . . . I hope they do well this year, especially because they took the chance with Favre but frankly I think they have a lot of work to do in order to be competitive with the top teams
I don't like Favre or the Vikings, but they are already one of the good teams. If teams have to beat bad teams by a lot of points to be considered a good team, then I think the Saints are the only team in the entire NFL that is any good. The Giants barely beat the Redskins. The Colts barely beat the Jags and Phins. The Jets had a close game with the Titans and already have a loss. The Patriots lost to the Jets and barely beat the Bills. Who are the good teams?
posted by bperk at 03:34 PM on October 06, 2009
They should have been able to put the game away last night ...
They led by 16 points in the fourth quarter and held the Packers to just one offensive touchdown up to that point. I don't think it was close simply because the Packers rallied to narrow the lead to 7.
posted by rcade at 03:57 PM on October 06, 2009
They should have been able to put the game away last night and wound up just hanging on at the end.
This isn't college. They don't rate the quality of the W. They just count the W.
With the exception of the Pats in 2007, no team has looked dominant all season. And we all know what happened to the Pats.
posted by cjets at 04:04 PM on October 06, 2009
The Pack turned the ball over a couple of times and failed to score in the red zone on a couple of occasions.
How is this an argument against the Viking defense being really, really good? It seems to me you're criticizing them for winning but not winning by a lot. That's pretty silly, if you ask me.
posted by dfleming at 04:06 PM on October 06, 2009
The Pack turned the ball over a couple of times and failed to score in the red zone on a couple of occasions.
One of those plays was a forced fumble by Jared Allen when it looked like the Pack was going to score early on. Coming up with great key plays at key times is the sign of a good team, imho.
posted by jmd82 at 04:12 PM on October 06, 2009
I am not saying a good team should beat a bad team by a lot of points. It just seems to me that they struggled with Cleveland, and Detroit, then were unable to stop the 49er offense when they finally got a lead in the 4th quarter of that game and had to come from behind on the last play, great as it was, and then last night even in victory gave up a lot of yardage. They may have beat the Pack but with a 16 point lead with 6 minutes to go and have the game come down to an onside kick was a sloppy finish on Minnesota's part. I think they should show a much better ability to control the ball offensively with their running game and their secondary needs work. Teams have moved to ball too easily so far.
Statistically speaking the Pack out rushed the Vikes, out passed the Vikes, averaged almost 7 yards per play, (sacks included) won the total yardage battle. Vikes only averaged 2.1 yards per rush (not good for the best back in football). The Packers only punted 2 times all evening.
My whole point is it may be a little premature for Vikes fans to buy their superbowl tickets yet. Ironically they sure are relying an awful lot on Favre to win games when the initial hype was that all he would need to do was hand off and properly manage the game by avoiding high risk throws. Ironically in the last two games they needed Favre the rocket arm gunslinger to pull them out of trouble. Thankfully he is what the hype about him says he is, the guy you want on your side when its on the line and the pressure is on.
I am sure they will get better. They are undefeated and look like they should stay that way for at least another week. I would just like to see them do a better job of controlling a game against opponents they should be much better than.
posted by Atheist at 04:34 PM on October 06, 2009
I had another thought about last nights game. It seemed to me the Packers did not respect Favre enough. Obviously their game plan was to stop Peterson and force Favre to throw to beat them. You would think that while Favre was standing in the pocket all day with no pressure and picking them to pieces, they would have adjusted to get some pressure on him, even if it meant a little softer run defense. If anything it was the Packer's fear of Adrian Peterson that opened up the passing game for Favre. To the credit of the Vikes, they never stopped going to Peterson, regardless of how ineffective he was, which kept the Packer LBs frozen on the run.
posted by Atheist at 04:48 PM on October 06, 2009
Since I now live in Dallas, the Favre media lovefest helps to break up the Romo media lovefest that I have to endure down here.
Brad Childress is not a great coach, and I agree that the coaching almost let GB back into the game. Why a soft defense when an attacking one had worked all game?
For the record, I have said all along that I don't necessarily think that Favre makes the Vikes a SuperBowl contender, but he does make them a better team, and a whole lot more fun to watch.
5-0...bring it!
posted by dviking at 08:29 PM on October 06, 2009
While I'm sure there will still be some Favre haters and doubters out there, the man came through with a great game in this much over-hyped MNF contest.
Three TD's and no interceptions, and he ran the game plan well. He never seemed emotional, and it looked like he was truly just having fun out there.
Rodgers, however, was pressured all night, and was sacked 8 times, one of them for a safety!
I know, I know, it's early in the season, and he's going to get tired and injured...blah blah blah. The Vikes are 4-0 and I'm living it!
Now, if my Twins can just come through for me tomorrow I'll be set! Great couple of days to be a sports fan in MN...be nice, we don't get this too often!