It did not take long to decide on our Game of the Week. There were a number of good matchups, but nothing had the marquee value -- or the intrigue -- of Jets-Dolphins. It was Brett Favre's first regular-season game as a Jet. It was also Chad Pennington starting his first game for the Dolphins against his former team.
Favre and Pennington said all the right things in the days leading up to the game. Favre insisted he didn't feel any added pressure. Pennington said it was nothing personal. We read the quotes and rolled our eyes. The two quarterbacks insisted this game was not about them. Of course, we knew better.
It was strange to see them at midfield: Favre in his Jets uniform, Pennington in his Dolphins aqua. They smiled, they hugged, they wished each other well, then they played the game. Both quarterbacks played well, but Favre has the better team and in the end that was the difference as the Jets hung on for a 20-14 victory.
I was just happy to see Favre back on the field. At NFL Films, we probably have more footage on Favre than any player in history. In our film vault, we have every game he has played in his 18 seasons. We have dozens of interviews and he has allowed us to wire him for sound numerous times. We've been up close and personal for every triumph and every disappointment in his Hall of Fame career.
His decision to play again this season did not surprise me. He was tired and deeply disappointed after losing the NFC Championship Game in January, but even at age 38, Favre knew he could still play at a high level. I was sure at some point that would be enough to lure him back. If it meant leaving Green Bay and catching some flak along the way, so be it.
I saw a lot of stories comparing Favre to Johnny Unitas and Joe Namath, great quarterbacks with faded skills who finished their careers being beaten into the ground with bad teams. I didn't see it that way. I felt the more accurate comparison would be to Joe Montana, who went from San Francisco to Kansas City and led the Chiefs to an AFC Championship Game.
Like Montana, Favre still had some zip left on his fastball. Favre had one of his best seasons in 2007, completing a career high 66 percent of his passes and leading the Packers to a 13-3 regular-season record. And like Montana, Favre was joining a team that actually had a chance to be competitive.
When you watch the Jets-Dolphins Game of the Week, you will see beneath the new team colors and the stubbly grey beard glimpses of the old Brett Favre. His first touchdown pass is a vintage 56-yard bomb to Jerricho Cotchery ( **Video**), his second touchdown pass is one of those "where-is-he-throwing-it?" fourth-down prayers that settles into the arms of Chansi Stuckey ( **Video**).
After each touchdown, you will see Favre running down the field, pumping his fist in the air, leaping in the arms of his new teammates and returning to the bench with a huge smile on his face. It's all very familiar and, for me, very welcome.
Nice to have you back, Brett. It just wouldn't have seemed like opening day without you.
