Game Face

Unless you've been away from your television and computer for the past 2+ days, you've seen the gigantic blowoff to the Brett Favre saga and his arrival in New York. And no matter your opinion of the deal, it is clearly one the Jets had to make once it was on the table.

With their busy offseason, picking up veterans including Alan Faneca, Kris Jenkins and Tony Richardson, this team is poised to take their shot immediately. Favre fits like a glove in this scenario, especially considering it's only going to cost the Jets one conditional draft pick, and they'll only be giving up a second round pick or better if they make the playoffs.

Don't be mistaken, however, and think that seeing the Favre of 2007 is a foregone conclusion. It will be somewhat of a struggle for Favre to get into Coach Mangini's system immediately, and forging chemistry with his teammates will be a yearlong process.

Once he gets into that system, Favre will not have a shortage of targets to throw at. Jets fans will finally be able to appreciate a quarterback who can throw the longball to their capable receivers. Jerricho Cotchery had a break-out 2007 season, and Laveranues Coles is a great possesion receiver.

There are quite a few young receiving prospects that have emerged thus far in training camp. First-round tight-end Dustin Keller has been as good as advertised as a pass-catching tight-end, and a pair of late-round 2007 picks in David Clowney and Chansi Stuckey have shown flashes of great potential in camp and in their first preseason contest against the Browns.

This season will be a truly unique test for both Favre and Gang Green. They share a city (and a stadium) with the defending Super Bowl champions, and they share a division with a team that won 18 games in a row last year and shows no signs of slowing down.

Can a soon-to-be 39-year-old quarterback bring the Jets back to the playoffs? We have the next five months to figure that out, and it should be one hell of a trip.

-- Tim Fiorvanti

(Photo by AP)

My, what a short memory NFL fans and analysts seem to have. As Brett Favre dominates headlines and talk radio, it seems everyone is blinded by his great 2007 season -- a perfect point, I thought, for No. 4 to make a graceful exit.

It seems many assume that with Favre at the controls, the Packers would be assured a return trip to the playoffs – maybe even a Super Bowl berth. But being widely overlooked is the fact that during the two seasons prior to 2007, Favre looked like an aging, declining quarterback.

That is something the Jets, too, should consider if they are indeed serious about trading for the three-time MVP.

In 2005, Favre threw the most interceptions of his career, 29 – that was 12 more than any other quarterback that season. He also posted a career-low quarterback rating of 70.9 – 31st best in the NFL.

In 2006, Favre’s QB rating improved only slightly, to 72.7. To put that into perspective, he was ranked 25th among NFL quarterbacks – just behind Chicago’s Rex Grossman, whom Bears fans clamored all season for the team to bench, and just ahead of Charlie Frye, who the Browns discarded last year in a trade with Seattle. That season, Favre also had his lowest completion percentage since becoming an NFL starter – 56 percent.

In those two seasons, the Packers were a combined 12-20.

Yes, Favre rebounded with a remarkable 2007 season, and it was a great story. But common sense says that quarterbacks don’t get better with age. His plunging production in 2005-06 was probably more indicative of the direction Favre’s play is headed, while 2007 was a shining aberration.

The Packers likely realize what most of the country seems to be ignoring: there’s too great of a chance that Favre will return to his 2005-06 form and statistically rank among the worst starting quarterbacks. So why not invest in their future (Aaron Rodgers) instead of living in their past (Favre)?

The NFL released its full schedule today. Here are the slates for the Jets and Giants:

JETS SCHEDULE
Sept. 7 at Miami Dolphins 1 p.m.
Sept. 14 New England Patriots 4:15 p.m.
Sept. 22 (Mon.) at San Diego Chargers 8:30 p.m.
Sept. 28 Arizona Cardinals 1 p.m.
Oct. 5 Bye
Oct. 12 Cincinnati Bengals 1 p.m.
Oct. 19 at Oakland Raiders 4:15 p.m.
Oct. 26 Kansas City Chiefs 1 p.m.
Nov. 2 at Buffalo Bills 1 p.m.
Nov. 9 St. Louis Rams 1 p.m.
Nov. 13 (Thurs.) at New England Patriots 1 p.m.
Nov. 23 at Tennessee Titans 1 p.m.
Nov. 30 Denver Broncos 1 p.m.
Dec. 7 at San Francisco 49ers 4:05 p.m.
Dec. 14 Buffalo Bills 1 p.m.
Dec. 21 at Seattle Seahawks 4:05 p.m.
Dec. 28 Miami Dolphins 1 p.m.

GIANTS SCHEDULE
Sept. 4 (Thurs.) Washington Redskins 7 p.m.
Sept. 14 at St. Louis Rams 1 p.m.
Sept. 21 Cincinnati Bengals 1 p.m.
Sept. 28 Bye
Oct. 5 Seattle Seahawks 1 p.m.
Oct. 13 at Cleveland Browns (Mon.) 8:30 p.m.
Oct. 19 San Francisco 49ers 1 p.m.
Oct. 26 at Pittsburgh Steelers 4:15 p.m.
Nov. 2 Dallas Cowboys 4:15 p.m.
Nov. 9 at Philadelphia Eagles 8:15 p.m.
Nov. 16 Baltimore Ravens 1 p.m.
Nov. 23 at Arizona Cardinals 4:15 p.m.
Nov. 30 at Washington Redskins 1 p.m.
Dec. 7 Philadelphia Eagles 1 p.m.
Dec. 14 at Dallas Cowboys* 8:15 p.m.
Dec. 21 Carolina Panthers 1 p.m.
Dec. 28 at Minnesota Vikings 1 p.m.

Laveranues Coles, angered by the Jets’ offseason spending spree while he was seeking a new contract, isn’t getting a new deal, but he and the team have reached an agreement that guarantees the remaining salary on his contract -- $11 million over two years, ESPN is reporting. This contradicts a report from The New York Post this morning that says the wide receiver was set to receive a contract extension.

The guarantee is being spun as a “compromise” in the ESPN report. Call me crazy, but I think if a player is looking for a new long-term contract and, in the end, gets stuck with his old contract, it doesn’t sound like much of a compromise. But for a pro football player on the wrong side of 30, even $11 million can be tough to walk away from.

Regardless, the Jets aren’t deep or talented enough at receiver to part ways with Coles right now, so Gang Green fans should be happy this saga is over.

(Photo by Travis Lindquist/Getty Images)