Brett Favre’s first game as a New York Jets against the Miami Dolphins showed he’s a little rusty but the potential is definitely there.
Favre and his new team beat the Dolphins 20–14 in very hot, humid conditions with the heat index pushing north of 100 degrees.
Dolphins QB Chad Pennington had a respectable game with his new team and almost ran the two-minute drill to perfection.
In an interview with Dan Marino on CBS, Favre spoke about his highly publicized move to the Jets.
“What the hell am I doing? I mean that in a positive way,” he said when asked what his first thoughts were on being a New York Jet. Favre knew he wanted to play again and that led to the Green Bay Packers management being put in a tough situation. “It turned out to be a big mess…but I’ve never been one to hold a grudge.”
Favre knew the odds would be stacked against him as a 39-year-old trying to have another successful season. In fact, only one 39-year-old QB has ever played a full 16-game season (Phil Simms).
But Favre has high expectations, as you would expect from somebody who broke all of Dan Marino’s long-standing records. “I didn’t come here to lose. I expect to win [just like Marino did]. Anything less will be a disappointment.”
Big Play
Favre has always been a gunslinger. It can get him into trouble at times but on most occasions, he comes up with a TD pass.
On the Jets’ second possession, Favre did a perfect play-action fake and fired a 56-yard TD pass to Jericho Cotchery. Last season, the Jets only had one pass play for more yards.
The Jets were up 7–0 lead as Pennington and the Dolphins had gotten off to a slow start.
The Jets should’ve gone up 10–0 but kicker Mike Nugent missed a 32-yard field goal. Nugent strained his thigh on the attempt. The question mark over Nugent’s ability to perform would lead to Favre’s second TD pass of the game.
With the score tied 7–7 in the second quarter, facing a fourth and 13 at the Miami 22-yard line, the Jets were forced to go for it since Nugent couldn’t kick the field goal.
Sure enough, Favre hit Chansi Stuckey down the middle of the field for a 22-yard TD. After that, the Packers were forced to try the two-point conversion, which they failed.
Favre was getting the job done although his veteran offensive line and the reliable running of Thomas Jones were certainly helping. Jones would finish the game with 101 yards rushing and one TD. Jones ran for only one TD last season despite racking up over 1,100 yards on the ground.
Two-Minute Drill
Trailing 20–13 with less than two minutes to play and no time-outs remaining, Pennington and the Dolphins had one last chance to steal the win.
Pennington showed his poise, accuracy, and mobility in driving the Dolphins to the Jets’ 18-yard line with five straight completions.
Pennington had enough time for two shots at the end zone from the 18, but on his first shot he threw it to the corner of the end zone. Jets corner back Darrelle Revis picked off Pennington’s pass despite being interfered with by Dolphins receiver Ted Ginn, Jr. The Jets hung on to beat the Dolphins 20–14.
“I’m thankful we got this win. It’s a tough win. Chad played great,” said Favre after the game.
“It’s a work in progress, it wasn’t pretty. A lot of that falls back on the quarterback.”
Favre completed 15 of 22 passes for 194 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Pennington completed 26 of 43 passes for 251 yards with two touchdowns and the one interception at the end of the game.
When asked how his first game was with the Jets, Favre summed it up: “I was about to pass out. Other than that, I was fine.”
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