RSSAsk Daily: Brett Favre’s Renaissance Year
Nov 22
Sports Football, New York Jets, NFL Comments Off
Question: Is Brett Favre Having a Renaissance Year?
Answer: It is hard to argue that Brett Favre looks reenergized with the New York Jets after squirming his way out of Green Bay during the offseason. He picked a good time (assuming he really had any competitive offers from other teams to consider) to join the Jets, who themselves have been playing second-fiddle to the New England Patriots for a long time, and could reasonably command the AFC East division this season.
After 10 games, the Jets are 7-3 (vastly improving on their 4-12 record from last year) and added a number of high profile good players to complement Favre along the offensive line (notably Alan Faneca and tight end Bubba Franks.) They didn’t wallop the Tom Brady-less New England Patriots, but they did pull out an overtime win in week 11, and have managed to dominate their division at least with wins over Miami in week one and Buffalo in week 9. That positions them for a great run over the final stretch of the season.
But since you asked about Favre, a little of Favre goes a long way. His problem has always been control issues when he’s trying to press down the field. That much, even at 39 years old, hasn’t changed even when he shed his Green Bay legacy. But New York has managed to tone that down by degrees without limiting Favre’s effectiveness and while integrating him into a new system. Frankly, I doubt anyone would have expected the coaching staff to have this much success.
Maybe by the end of the season, the stats will tell a different tale, but this is the same Favre that we saw in Green Bay. Even in 2005 when the Packers went 4-12, Favre’s overall stats have been fairly consistent from year to year. He thrives with a strong ensemble cast around him and plays hard and strong with little subtly. The control all comes from a good game plan and a willful coach. Now, who could have guessed that would come from Eric Mangini, who plays spoiled brat an awful lot, but maybe what Mangini needed was someone like Favre to gameplan for.
The Jets face off against the undefeated Tennessee Titans. A win puts them in rarefied company of spoiling an undefeated season, but a respectable loss wouldn’t be the worst outcome. The Titans are a physically tough team and they have the mystique of an undefeated team.
