Brett Favre faltered in Vikings’ NFC title game loss to Saints – Joe Posnanski – SI.com
Ok – I was tempted to blog about the Vikings-Saints game on Sunday night, but really did not have anything to say that was not obvious. This column, however, brought out the need to say something.
First off, is this writer the biggest freaking moron in the world?
To say that Favre threw the ball that was intercepted because he was afraid to get hit is just silly. This is a guy who stood in the pocket and got pounded into the (fake) dirt almost every time he dropped back to pass on Sunday night.
And he got back up, every time.
He got drilled by New Orleans’ #93 after handing the ball off in the first half. And jumped right back up.
He got driven into the ground in the fourth, drawing a personal fowl. And got back up.
He got hit high and low a couple of plays later, in what should clearly have been a penalty under the “Brady Rule”. He had to be helped off the field, but was right back out there the next play.
I lost count of the number of times Favre was hit and hit hard. And then add to that the number of hits he dodged (which he still does damn well for a 40 year old guy).
And yet he continued to play, continued to fight.
I would say that Favre’s performance on Sunday was one of the toughest I have ever seen, in any sport.
As for the “He should have run it” argument, are we forgetting the fact that a few minutes earlier it looked like Favre would not be able to walk, let alone run?
Let’s look not at the whole “Favre lost the game” delusion.
This highlights, in part, the folly of Favre’s return this season. It was clear from the start that if the Vikings were to go all the way, then it would be credited to “the team”, but if they failed to it would be “Favre’s fault”.
But let’s look at how they got to the point of needing last minute heroics. Lets look at the ball carriers of the Vikings putting it on the ground 6 times. Lets look at Percy Harvin fumble putting the Saints 7 yards from a touchdown that gave them a 7 point lead, when the Vikings defence had shut them down through the entire second half. Lets talk about an offensive line that left Favre dangling in the breeze almost every play. Lets talk about the complete mental lapse that led to 12 men in the huddle (after a time out to get things organized, yet).
Like their season, this was a team effort. No one player should be singled out. But of course, Favre gets the blame.
Was the decision to throw, and throw where he did, a bad one? Sure. But if he had managed to force it where he wanted it (as he has so many times before) he would have been a hero, not a bum.
But the fact is, he would not have been in the position to have to make this play if not for all the other errors the Vikings committed throughout the game.
I really get sick of wannabe, sideline athletes (even long term, successful ones like Posnanski) sitting back and questioning the toughness and commitment of someone like Favre.
As for Posnanski’s final question “So: What makes Brett Favre NOT run?” – well, leaving aside the fact that he could barely walk, let a lone run, maybe it was the fact that he has been playing QB for almost 20 years, and may actually see things that morons like you don’t.
FredSpace 