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Peter Finney - Times-Picayune - Who would have guessed a 40-year-old Mississippi-bred quarterback would be standing between the New Orleans Saints and a trip to Super Bowl XLIV on Feb. 7 at Dolphin Stadium in Miami?

How could this happen?



Logic suggests Favre should be back home, enjoying life in Kiln, Miss., sipping suds at the Broke Spoke, a biker's hangout where Favre memorabilia enjoys a place of honor.



Logic tells you a kid who grew up rooting for the Saints at Benny French's, a onetime restaurant-bar in Henderson Point, riding his tricycle and bumping into pool tables, should be in charge of a Mississippi chapter of Who Dats instead of trying to knock the Saints out of the playoffs.



It doesn't make sense.



But there was Favre on Sunday, having changed his NFL address, from the Green Bay Packers to the New York Jets to the Minnesota Vikings, carrying his newest team past the Dallas Cowboys 34-3 in an NFC divisional playoff game and into a Sunday showdown against the Saints for the NFC championship at the Superdome.


A dozen years ago, Favre showed up on Poydras Street where he quarterbacked Green Bay to its first Super Bowl victory in 29 years, a 35-21 victory over the New England Patriots.



On the second play of the game, Favre threw a 54-yard touchdown pass. He would throw for another. He would complete a pass for 81 yards, the longest play from scrimmage in Super Bowl history.



A dozen years later, in Minneapolis, the Packer-turned-Viking was playing his way back to the Superdome, throwing for four touchdowns against the Dallas Cowboys.



Favre dominated. He took some sacks, but he made no mistakes. He was the oldest quarterback to carry a team this far in a Super Bowl chase.
Posing the question of the moment: Are Favre and the Vikings a better match for the Saints as Tony Romo and the Cowboys would have been?
Before the kickoff, I thought the Saints would have a better shot against the Vikings.



Now I don't think so.



Why?



Brett Favre.



When you watch him alongside Romo -- and factor in the playoff pressures involved -- you had an example how Favre now is into one of those mindset zones where he's lifting a good team to greater heights, virtually by sustained brilliance.



Each of his first three touchdown passes were vintage Favre. A 47-yarder that hit a well-covered receiver in full stride. A shorter completion in which the receiver became the target, only after Favre broke out of the pocket and found him all alone. A downfield strike where Favre put the ball only where the receiver could get it.



Favre was having fun.



He knows how to take a sack. Romo, whose protection was poor, didn't.
From what the Vikings showed Sunday, the biggest problem facing New Orleans Coach Sean Payton's offense will be affording quarterback Drew Brees effective protection, giving him enough time to take advantage of a suspect secondary.



The plus is Brees is a far better decision-maker than Romo.



Another problem: How much damage can the Saints' running game do against a Minnesota defense that is far better than the one the Saints faced against the Arizona Cardinals in host New Orleans' 45-14 victory in an NFC divisional playoff game Saturday?



As for Gregg Williams' defense, the questions are obvious:
Can the Saints' defense handle a battering ram like Adrian Peterson, who had a quiet day against the Cowboys but is capable of game-changing moments?



Most of all, can New Orleans' defense apply the kind of pressure to Favre it applied to the Cardinals' Kurt Warner?



Amazingly, Favre has become less reckless at his age at putting the ball up for grabs as he was doing in his later years at Green Bay.



When you're looking at a Saints-Vikings matchup, you can't forget the dynamic tug of war on special teams: Reggie Bush vs. Minnesota, and Percy Harvin vs. New Orleans.



Do you punt to Harvin who's averaging 27 yards a return?



Do you punt to a healthy Reggie Bush?



Fortunately, all these questions will be answered at the Superdome on Sunday.



LINKBACK: NOLA.COM

SaintPauly

From what the Vikings showed Sunday, the biggest problem facing New Orleans Coach Sean Payton's offense will be affording quarterback Drew Brees effective protection, giving him enough time to take advantage of a suspect secondary.

(Arizona has arguably one of the best WR sets in the freaking league. A set that shredded the Vikings secondary like velveeta cheese. And our O-line is better than Arizona's, so I'm not really concerned with this.)

Most of all, can New Orleans' defense apply the kind of pressure to Favre it applied to the Cardinals' Kurt Warner?

(We have the edge in this category, because the game is at our house, not in Minnesota. And the Cards O-line is not that bad, so maybe our D-line is not as bad as you think)

All in all, these kinds of articles I have been expecting all day. Favre, favre, favre, favre, favre..... This game, according to the media, will center around him, and him alone. Sad music videos, of his career highlights, and his possible retirement, will hit the airwaves like a freaking comet, and all of his fans (mostly female, anyone else ever notice that? When they show the stands, it seems more women are wearing the 4 jersey than guys. Crazy) will cry, and put their hands on their faces, in a complete possibility that he might be gone after this season.

Enough, is enough. I want to see Will Smith's number tattooed on Brett's forehead. I want a championship, and I wouldn't care if a parapalegic, semi-retarded, dying of cancer patient was QBing for the Vikings, I say BRING THE WOOD!!!

What's popular is not always right, and what's right is not always popular.....

homerj07

I am sooooo sick hearing about Farve - Lets beat the snot out of the Viks & stamp our ticket to the Superbowl.

AP is fumble prone. GW & SP will study the tapes of what other teams have done & they will have a great game plan - I am sure.