ESPN BS

Gregg,

First I would say spend the time, hours of time, that coaches do watching the film from Sunday and you will see, one, that if Favre had run he may have made it back to the line of scrimmage, but probably not, because there were two linebackers spying him until he released the ball, and they were waiting, hoping, for him to run so they could take his head off, and they are significantly faster than Favre, without his bad "wheel." Two, let's see, put the ball on the turf five times and lose three of them, drop balls that you normally catch, call two running plays setting up this third down and don't make a yard, and then oh yea, send personnel on the field for third down and don't count, thus backing up that kick five yards. What else?? Have an offensive line that can't get Adrian Peterson a yard when needed, and can't protect your quarterback, and let's not forget the 63 yard kick return you allow, not unlike your special teams play against the Bears in a game that Favre did everything possible, and impossible, to win the game in spite of all the flaws in this team and its coaching staff.

But you are right Gregg, this is all about Favre, but only because you and your colleagues at ESPN have decided it should be that way disregarding journalistic integrity and/or fact. Please don't let either of those get in your way!! All Brett Favre want's to do is play football. All ESPN wants to do is villainize him because that is more fun and keeps people reading.

Brett Favre, felled by his fatal flaw
Comment Email Print Share
By Gregg Easterbrook

Hamartia. The "tragic flaw" described by Aristotle: A leader cannot control his own inner shortcoming, which causes him to achieve the reverse of what he desired. In "Antigone," the king, Creon, tells himself he is acting in the interest of the city, when actually he is acting to glorify his own ego -- this hamartia destroys him. Brett Favre comes up a bit short of a character in ancient Thebes, but on Sunday he was brought low by hamartia all the same. It was not enough for Favre's team to reach the Super Bowl -- he had to get the credit. Game tied with 19 seconds remaining, Favre scrambled at about the New Orleans 40-yard line, with open field ahead of him. All he needed to do was run a few yards, hook-slide, call timeout, and the Vikings' strong-legged kicker, Ryan Longwell, had a solid chance to win the NFC championship. But the credit had to go to Favre; he had to throw a spectacular pass at the end, so television announcers would swoon. So he heave-hoed a dramatic across-the-field pass. It was intercepted, and the Saints won in overtime.

Perhaps you are thinking, "It was just a dumb mistake, and the whole thing happened in a couple of seconds." No. Two years of Favre's life built up to that moment. For two years, Favre has insisted that entire NFL franchises, the Jets and the Vikings, become thralls to his celebrity. He has used his stature to demand, demand, demand -- the crux of the demands are always attention and publicity for himself. Now he is brought low. In two of the past three seasons, Favre has lost in the NFC Championship Game. Each time, his team seemed poised to win at the end; each time, Favre's final play was a disastrous interception. And each of those title losses eventually came in overtime -- to punish Favre for his hamartia, twice the football gods allowed him to come so close, so close, then denied him. Favre has been brought so low, he is now being laughed at in Wisconsin, and he has only himself to blame. Aristotle would not be surprised by the ending of the Favre saga. If, of course, it was the ending.