Packers Are Pumped After Beating Vikings

Down by four points, fourth and one at the opponent’s 23-yard line, no time outs remaining, the clock running with 16 seconds left at the snap of the ball.

After seeing Green Bay’s 23-20 victory over Minnesota on Sunday, now who would you rather have under center--Brett Favre or Joe Montana?

“You have to put Brett [Favre] in the same class now with Joe Montana,” said Ray Rhodes, a defensive assistant with the 49ers during Montana’s reign, and presently head coach of the Packers. “But Brett has the ability to be the better improviser because he has the bigger arm. Joe was a helluva quarterback with all those Super Bowl wins, but this kid has an amazing ability to take things over and get it done.”

Favre, still etching his place in NFL history and who won’t turn 30 until Oct. 10th, shunned the sideline route to pick up the first down and stop the clock Sunday, and deflated the Vikings (1-2) with a touchdown toss to Corey Bradford for the win before 59,868 in Lambeau Field.

“I’ll say it with no apologies to anyone,” said Ron Wolf, the Packer general manager. “Brett Favre is the greatest player to have ever played in Lambeau Field.”

The Packers (2-1) have now won 32 of their last 33 games at home with Favre improvising, and 50 of 56 with him as their starting quarterback.

He has started 112 consecutive games, a staggering statistic in this game of injuries, and needs only five more to pass Ron Jaworksi and set the NFL record for durability by a quarterback.

“Any time he’s in there, you have the chance to win,” said Wolf, who acquired Favre in trade with Atlanta in 1992.

There have been many good times here in recent years, with the Packers often pounding the opposition and needing no last-minute heroics, but now parity demands the best Favre has to offer.

“The days of easy games are over; there are going to be no more blowouts,” said Favre, who has been playing with a swollen thumb on his throwing hand. “Nothing’s easy anymore, but we’re a good football team, because you have to be a good football team to come back and beat teams like Minnesota and Oakland.”

The winning touchdown against Minnesota came with 12 seconds to play. Two weeks ago against Oakland here, his winning touchdown pass to Jeff Thomason came with 11 seconds to go.

“Exciting?” said Favre. “Our first offensive touchdown came on our last play of the game against Minnesota. Pretty exciting.”

He zigs, he zags, the ball coming from his arm sometimes sideways, and ugly, but somehow it seems to go where intended. On one play during the game-winning drive, Viking defender Duane Clemons had Favre’s legs wrapped up, and he still managed to dump off a 10-yard pass to running back Dorsey Levens.

When his team scored, he took off running the opposite way, his hand high into the air, until teammate and linebacker Brian Williams grabbed him, falling on him, both rolling around on the turf.

And then he noticed something, he couldn’t breathe. Removed to the bench, he laid on his back fighting for air. Oxygen was administered.

“I’m too tired to cry,” he said later at the postgame press conference, a reference to the tears he shed after beating the Raiders. “Hey, I’m just a big kid out here playing.

“And that touchdown, I’ve dreamed that a million times when I was a kid. [But] I don’t think Corey was in that dream.”

And everyone laughed, appreciative of his ability to improvise both on and off the field.

“I didn’t think we would go for it all,” Bradford said. “But Brett called an audible, and I just said to myself, ‘if he throws it to me, I’ve got to catch it.”’

Now it was Favre’s turn to laugh. “I didn’t call anything. That was just a play where the guys know what to do,” he said. “I was too tired to say anything. I’m not sure I said, ‘hut.’ ”

On the snap, Favre turned toward wide receiver Bill Schroeder, and pump-faked. The Viking defense fell for it, while Bradford kept sprinting to the end zone.

“I saw the coverage they were in and I pumped one way and saw Corey break open,” Favre said. “I was lucky to find him.”

The Vikings were one play away from winning after jumping ahead, 20-16, with 1:51 to play on Randall Cunningham’s 10-yard touchdown pass to Randy Moss.

One play, or a tackle inbounds and time expires.

“With the time that was left you wouldn’t think that play would work,” Green Bay safety LeRoy Butler said. “You’d think we would just throw it to the sidelines, but Brett surprised everybody. But then the way Ray [Rhodes] coaches us, it’s like kill a mosquito with an ax. And so then it’s really not surprising to see us go for it all.”

Favre’s game-winner, while spectacular, was also huge for its implications. The Packers had been trampled by the Vikings twice a year ago, dedicating their off-season and using their initial three picks on defensive backs in the draft to finding a way to control big-play Minnesota.

The Vikings, a monster on offense a year ago primarily because of Moss, who caught 17 touchdown passes, appears unwilling this season to give him the ball.

Moss, who has one touchdown in three games, had one reception for three yards until getting into the end zone in the final two minutes. Cunningham threw his way five times in the game, twice on aborted lobs into the end zone in the first half, but for the most part neglected him as if the two were not on speaking terms.

Another question: If you were trying to find a way to get to the Super Bowl, who would you rather have, Cunningham or Brad Johnson?

The Vikings kept Cunningham, and traded Johnson to Washington. In Johnson’s last five starts, including two while with Minnesota, his team has averaged 36 points a game.

This year, Minnesota is averaging 18 points a contest.

“In a close game like this, everybody thinks you are going to score 45 points,” Minnesota wide receiver Cris Carter said. “But that’s not the way it is. They probably have the best quarterback in the league--that makes it difficult.”

The Vikings, in danger of falling off the NFL map, must play defensive-minded Tampa Bay next week, while the Packers have an open date.

“This is just exhausting,” Rhodes said. “What a battle. I can’t tell you how tough that is, and how good of a team Minnesota is, but our guys hung in there, and when we needed a play, Brett made it.”