Fret not, Viking fans. I'm sure the sight of your quarterback arguing with—and then asserting his dominance over—your coach in the middle of Week 15 is no cause for alarm. All Super Bowl champs wilt in December, right?
Favre's numbers have taken a bit of dip over the last three games, two of which were Minnesota losses. So after watching his 57-year-old quarterback get battered around in a less than vital game, coach Brad Childress thought he might give The Gunslinger a bit of breather. But no can do on that. The best buddies visibly argued on the sideline when Childress asked him to sit down, but Favre insisted on taking (and admirably received) all his lumps in a 19-point drubbing to the lowly Panthers.
Then on the morning after we found out that this is not the first time this happened. According to reports, on at least two other occasions this season Childress tried—and somehow failed—to bench his starting quarterback during games. Some might generously attribute Favre's refusal to leave the field to his unprecedented love of the game. Others might suspect that "Chilly" (I guess that's what we're calling him now?) has no authority over his quarterback and, by extension, the rest of his team. (According to Adam Schefter, one of the previous attempted benchings came when Favre audibled against his coach's wishes.) Since the team was only able to muster seven points last night, neither option sounds comforting.
So now the two big question marks of this Vikings team—Favre's ego and Childress' competence—have collided head on with just two weeks to go in the season. Oh, and did we mention the two December losses? Cheer up, you won the division title!
Yes, the Central still counts!
Childress had tried to bench Favre previously [Star-Tribune]
Monday (Vikings = champions!) edition: Wha' Happened? [Star-Tribune]
Favre episode causes predictable waves [Dan Wetzel]
Is Favre coach and QB? [Fox Sports]
Good Teams Taking a Turn for the Worse [NY Times]