Hard Times in Green Bay

It’s not the cheese.

In America’s Dairyland, everybody wants to know one thing: What’s wrong with Green Bay Packer quarterback Brett Favre?

The three-time most valuable player has been erratic and inaccurate as the Packers, in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 1992, have stumbled to four losses in their last five games.

Bothered by a nagging thumb injury, Favre leads the league with 15 interceptions, and his quarterback rating of 69.5 ranks 26th. He has passed for 13 touchdowns, putting in jeopardy his streak of five consecutive seasons with more than 30 touchdowns passes. His father was even quoted last weekend as saying his son has little confidence in his game, a notion Favre himself disputes.

The quarterback refuses to make excuses, even as speculation grows that his right thumb is affecting him more than he or anyone else is willing to let on.

“There’s throws I’ve missed this year that I can make with my eyes closed,” he said after Sunday’s 27-13 loss to the Cowboys, in which Favre, by his own count, missed at least 10 receivers on throws that were too long, too short or just plain bad. “It would be easy to blame it on my hand and thumb, but I can’t do that. I know guys are saying, ‘Hey, if Brett was healthy, he’d make those throws.’ Well, no one really cares about that. You have to make them.”