What about Bob?

Here's a terrific quote from former Ravens coach Brian Billick, now a Fox analyst, on the challenges Brett Favre faces with the Jets:

"I can’t think of another player of Brett Favre’s stature, as iconic as he is, that was asked to come in after 16 years knowing a system to now have to go to a system that is totally different. He’ll do it, but it’s like language. You may speak a language but do you think the language, do you dream in that language? Also, I know he’s been on the big stage but having a career in Green Bay versus now in New York, 'You’re not in Kansas anymore Dorothy.’ If you stumble in New York you’re going to hear about it. It’s going to be interesting to watch but it’s going to be more of an adjustment than I think people recognize.”

That's an adage I first heard from legendary New York Times columnist Dave Anderson, my idol growing up in this business.

Anderson used it when he was a beat reporter covering the Jets, whose quarterback was a fellow named Joe Namath.

Now that Brett Lorenzo Favre is the Jets' quarterback, the adage applies just as much. So take a look at Boland's fine piece from today's newspaper on Favre talking about any number of things, including his bitter divorce from the Packers.

Regardless of what Favre does on the field, the man is a quote machine. Please, do not stop talking, sir.

There has been a question/concern about the Jets' PSL policy sent in via e-mail and comments on the blog, and I reached out to the team to get an explanation.

Some have wondered whether the seats they now have at the Meadowlands will be the ones they are assigned by the Jets for the new stadium. Not necessarily. Say you are in a mezzanine seat at the Meadowlands, and the corresponding area at the new stadium requires a hefty PSL fee. You are NOT required to take this seat, nor will the team assign that seat to you.

If you have enough seniority as a season ticket holder and want to move to, say, the upper tier in the new stadium (an area that does not require a PSL), you are free to do so and the Jets accommodate the request based on your seniority.

There is certainly a chance that enough people will choose to go to the non-PSL area, which will theoretically bump other season ticket-holders who prefer to sit there. But the Jets believe that when it all shakes out, there will be an appropriate seating arrangement for everyone.

They're not guaranteeing it, but the studies they've done indicate that most requests will be fulfilled.

Another reader wondered if his current seats - which are in the area that in the new stadium will be the Coaches Club seats at the new stadium - mean that he will have to join the bidding process and theoretically get shut out of the seats. Again, not necessarily. If the ticket holder wants to move to another area, and if he has enough seniority, he will be accommodated. In other words, just because his seats are now in an area that will feature prohibitively expensive PSL's because of the Coaches Club amenities doesn't mean he will be kicked out of the stadium.

Any more questions, let me know and I'll do my best to get an answer.

A loyal reader who has been in regular contact with us over the years regarding all things Jets offers an interesting take on the Jets' decision not to institute a personal seat license plan for all upper tier seats. It's a move that was met with general approval from fans, especially because of the Giants' decision to charge $1,000 for PSL's in upper tier seats.

But here's a potential downside, as our reader sees it:

"Giant season ticket holders in the Upper Deck are guaranteed of keeping their seats as long as they pay a $1000 PSL. Seniority of holding tickets is not a factor in their PSL plan. However, the Jets are basing seniority of their PSL plan. Therefore, existing season ticket holders in the Upper Deck are at risk of being displaced by ticket holders sitting downstairs who possess more seniority and wish to move to the Upper Deck in order to avoid paying no PSL at all. So the end result would be that current upper deck season ticket holders lacking seniority could actually be forced to pay for an expensive PSL that is tied to lower or mid level seats.Or their seat location in the upper deck could be significantly downgraded (for the first row in the upper deck to the last row)."

It's a very interesting point, and we'll be interested to see how it all plays out once the ticket/PSL-purchasing process begins. Chances are Best will be paying a bit more attention to this, seeing that the regular season is about to begin and the only concern he has about Brett Favre is any endorsement deals he might be coming across.

And, of course, if you have any information on which corporation might be sponsoring a corner of the new football stadium, please let him know. If you get any leads on the name of the sponsor for the whole she-bang, Best will do back handsprings in Times Square if you tell him.

Steve Kern of Boonton Township, N.J. who organized a rally last Saturday at the Meadowlands protesting the introduction of PSL’s, said today's announcement was a mixed bag.

“The good news was that there are no PSL’s in the upper deck,” said Kern, a Jets’ season ticket holder the last 15 years. “Supposedly the revenue they’re generating ($370 million in PSL’s) is the same as the Giants, which means that the remaining PSL’s are all increased in cost to make up for not having PSL’s in the upper deck.”

For Kern personally, the news was not good. If he were to purchase similar seats in the new stadium to what he has now, he would pay $10,000 per ticket and $140 per seat per game. Under the Giants’ PSL plan, those seats would cost $5,000 per PSL and $120 per ticket.

Kern's situation is one reason the Giants decided to go with the $1,000 per PSL fee for all upper tier seats. The Giants had determined in other stadiums that spreading the PSL burden more equally among more fans would lessen the blow overall; the Jets' plan to not have PSL's in the upper deck, yet still generate the same revenue, means they would have to charge more for the PSL's located in more desirable seats.

What's the phrase: a riddle wrapped in a conundrum?

Sorry for the delay. After Woody J. briefed us on PSL's, went to visit T Rock's locker room a few floors down. Eli Manning and the Giants are doing quite well these days, even in spite of Mr. Umenyiora's issues.

Anyway, here's the Jets' pricing plan for seats. We'll start from the upper bowl and go on down:

NO PSL
Upper Prime - $125 per ticket
Upper Sideline - $105
Upper Endzone - $95

PSL OWNER
Area / PSL cost/ Ticket cost
Lower prime $20,000 $150
Lower sideline $15,000 $140
Lower corner $10,000 $140
Lower Endzone $5,000 $120
Mezzanine $4,000 $120

CLUB MEMBER PSL
Area / PSL cost / Ticket cost
Coaches Club (Auction/tbd) $700
Great Hall Club $25,000 $700
Club Prime $25,000 $500
Club Sideline $15,000 $500
Club Redzone $7,500 $400
Club Corner $5,000 $400

Just about to wrap up press conference on the Jets' announcement of PSL's, and here's some encouraging news, all things considered.

Unlike the Giants' plan, in which every seat will require the purchase of a personal seat license, the entire upper bowl of the new stadium will be PSL-free for Jets' games.

That's 27,000 seats that will not require a PSL. The average ticket prices will be between $95-$125 for those seats.

More details to follow ...

T-minus 2 hours and six minutes until we find out details of the Jets' personal seat license (PSL) program.

It will be very interesting to see just how much the Jets will charge for the right to purchase seats, the cost of which will increase exponentially over today's pricing plan.

I will bring you details as soon as I get them.

In the meantime, if you have any thoughts about how it might feel to plunk down $20,000 or so for the right to purchase a single ticket for $500 or so, please feel free to let us know.

Jets owner Woody Johnson told me before tonight's Giants-Jets preseason game that the team would release details of its personal seat license policy this week. He said not all the elements of the PSL program would be made public, but it sounded as if the majority of the pricing system would be listed.

The Giants released their pricing system shortly before the start of training camp.

Longtime Jets fan Steve Kern staged a rally before last night's game to protest the PSL policies of both teams, although only a handful of fans - maybe 50 in all - showed up. Kern said he will press ahead with plans to send a dvd of the speakers at the rally, as well as his own ideas about improving the PSL system, to the respective teams' owners.

Both Johnson and Giants president and co-owner John Mara declined to comment on the rally. Both were invited but declined to attend.

Andrew Brandt, the former Packers' salary cap expert who now runs an independent website - Nationalfootballpost.com - has an interesting tidbit on the Jets agreeing to re-work part of Brett Favre's contract as a way to make the trade more palatable.

According to Brandt: Favre’s agent, Bus Cook, and the Jets renegotiated the contract to consist of the identical financial terms from the Packers’ contract – 12M this year, 13M next and 14M in 2010 – and nothing more. The language concerning appearances for the club and recovery of bonus due to retirement is no longer part of the deal.

Favre, if willing, is free to make appearances on behalf of the Jets to promote the team as it starts to play in a new stadium next season, but he has no contractual obligation to do so. Favre can also retire from the Jets at any time and have no obligation to forfeit any of the bonus monies he has received (Tampa Bay recovered 3.5M from Jake Plummer after trading for a contract that required recovery upon retirement).

Brandt points out that "a renegotiation such as this could present a dangerous precedent for players who are traded and make certain non-economic demands, as well as for star players who want concessions outside of salary and bonus provisions."

Interesting stuff. We'll look into it and see what the potential ramifications are. My inintial sense is that the language was changed to make it easier for Favre to walk away after one season and not face the kind of penalties that Plummer did. The interesting part comes if Favre wants to leave the Jets and join another team - say, the Vikings, his team of choice before being dealt to the Jets.

Seems he scuffled on the links a bit yesterday in the annual Writer Cup between Jets and Giants hacks, won by the Big Blue crew.

Funny, but Boland always struck me as a guy who was a really, really good golfer. You know, the kind of guy who wears golf shirts to training camp practices and might actually sneak a practice swing or two in while Brett Favre takes a water break in practice. You don't wear those shirts or practice your swing without being good (or, I suppose, without getting them for free). Then again, maybe it has something to do with Newsday Jets beat writers who play golf. After all, Cimini once expressed delight at having shot a 103 a few years back. To which I responded: "How come you aren't any better?" He was not amused.

Anyway, our man Boland - the Bubbling Cauldron of Intensity himself - offers some brilliant prose on chucking his clubs yesterday. It almost made me want to take up golf again just so I could see it.

I used to play quite a bit, in fact. Journal News columnist was an eyewitness to my personal best 79 a few decades back. But I decided shortly thereafter that golf took up way too much time, involved way too much practice to be any good at it, and was simply not worth the emotional investment. Thus, I avoided man Boland moments in my lifetime, choosing soccer and hockey as my extracurricular athletic activities.

(No, I will not ask Boland why he isn't any better. Maybe in a month or two, when the steam stops coming out of his ears over his unfortunate performance.)

Ok, I have to get to Giants Stadium (oops, it's a Jets home game, so it's the Meadowlands tonight) to speak to angry fans who will rally against the introduction of personal seat licenses.

I discovered that when I read the headline on my column in the paper about Brett Favre facing the Giants - his nemeses - for the first time since the NFC Championship Game seven months and 80 degrees ago at Lambeau Field.

There's some interesting stuff from Favre on what his dad might have told him during the off-season soap opera that ultimately ended with his divorce from the Packers' organization. There's also a tidbit about a conversation I had the other day with Michael Strahan about Favre.

I had mentioned to Strahan that he did the right thing by taking all the time he needed before finally realizing he was ready to retire, as opposed to Favre's early retirement in March and his subsequent reversal that caused so much upheaval. Strahan said Favre should have done the same thing.

There's also an interesting nugget about what Favre's dad, Irvin, might have told him had he still been alive today. Brett said Irvin Favre would have told him to keep playing ... in Green Bay.

I would generally leave this one alone and allow my esteemed NFL writing colleague Peter King of Sports Illustrated battle it out on his own.

But PK, who took a shot at Jets' fans in his Monday Morning Quarterback for not showing up in droves for Brett Favre's preseason debut on Saturday night against the Redskins, poured some more gas on the fire with a retort to the fans' criticism of his take.

I'll leave you to make your own judgements.

I will say two things on the subject, however.

1. I would never criticize a fan for not showing up to a preseason game, even if he/she has already paid for a ticket. The games are meaningless, people's time is valuable, and if there is something better to do on a warm summer night than drive four hours round trip, spend $60 in gas, another $100 in food and other expenses - especially in this economy - then it is that person's right. Regardless of whether it's Brett Favre or Joe Montana or Johnny Unitas. To question his/her loyalty to the team over not showing up is simply not an issue.

2. I very rarely get into bashing fans, because without them I would be doing something entirely different with my life and, I daresay, something far less enjoyable. The only time I do criticize is when their behavior at games is vile, dangerous or otherwise inappropriate. Case in point: When Chad Pennington suffered a sprained ankle in the regular season opener and lay on the field, you could hear several Jets' fans actually cheering. Now THAT was a disgrace.

(And, by the way, it is not my intention to get into a war of words with PK, whose friendship and work I have enjoyed immensely over many, many years. This is all about fans and preseason games.)

You can return to your regularly scheduled programming now.

... but he's hoping for a little more action in next Saturday's preseason title against the Giants.

That's typically the game when the starters play the most, and Favre was lobbying Eric Mangini after last night's game to play as much as possible.

"It's now or never," he said.

In the meantime, Favre can enjoy the afterglow of last night's solid play in the first quarter against the Redskins. The guy looked pretty comfortable, considering he was "bush-hogging" down in Missisippi 10 days ago.

Another item from Sunday's column was about a fan who is fed up with the notion of paying top dollar for Personal Seat Licenses (PSL's). His name is Steve Kern, and he's a long-time Jets' season ticket holder.

What's different about Kern is that he's not content to simply vent about the situation by calling his nearest sports talk radio station. He's staging a rally next Saturday before the Jets-Giants preseason game. It's set for 4 p.m.

Here's some more detail about what Kern plans to do.

Many of my colleagues in the newspaper industry look down their noses at the idea of doing a story about fans (sorry, fans, but it's true). I do not share that feeling.

Especially when one of those fan stories produces an anecdote as cute as the one I came across last night.

Out in the parking lot, a guy named Tim Donnelly was tailgating before Brett Favre's first preseason appearance against the Jets. I asked Donnelly if he was excited about getting to see a Hall of Fame quarterback now playing for the home team, and he was indeed.

But there was more to it than that.

The morning of Aug. 7, Donnelly woke up to the news that the Jets had traded for Favre. Later that day, his wife gave birth to a son.

"I got a quarterback and a son in one day," Donnelly said.

He tried to convince his wife, Marie, that this was such a good omen the couple should name the baby Brett. No dice, she said. How about the middle name Brett? Sorry, dude.

No worries. Liam Thomas Donnelly will soon become familiar with what it is to be a Jets' fan, although the chances are close to zero that Favre will be the team's quarterback at that point. But if he needs any proof of how special the day was, he can just check out the story we had in today's Newsday.

I kid you not.

As part of the Packers' discussions with Favre about a post-career marketing deal worth up to $20 million, one of the considerations was having Favre write a blog.

The proposed deal also included a merchandise line, autographs, and personal appearances, according to a report in The Sporting News' online newsletter today. And even though Favre decided to return to the NFL and was eventually traded to the Jets, the Packers still want to sign him to a merchandising deal once his career finally ends.

Brett the Blogger.

Wow.

Then Boland's your man. He's set for a live chat at 11:30 a.m.

The former Giants quarterback had a different take on Favre's comeback than most former players. Where plenty of ex-NFLers applauded Favre for scratching the itch he felt for playing again, Hostetler thinks it will be a tough road for the iconic quarterback.

I caught up with Hostetler the other day at Patriots training camp, where he was watching his nephew, tight end Jonathan Stupar, try out for the team. We were just shooting the breeze about all things NFL when Hostetler shared his opinions about Favre.

Very interesting stuff.

I covered Hostetler during his years with the Giants, and he was one of the most thoughtful and engaging players you'd ever want to meet. A very prideful man, he didn't enjoy sitting on the bench behind Phil Simms all those years. But when his opportunity came in the 1990 season, he made the most of it by leading the Giants to their second Super Bowl championship.

(-photo by Jim Turner, Giants.com)

Well, that's the word he used in a column by Newsday's Jim Baumbach, who caught up with Nagle to talk about his experiences as the Jets' ill-fated quarterback.

Why such a surprise that Nagle would use the word paradigm? Well, he wasn't known to toss around $5 words during his time with the Jets, who tried in vain to get Brett Favre in the 1991 draft, only to settle on Nagle.

In fact, some Jets players had nicknamed Nagle "Nuke" after the Bull Durham character Nuke LaLoosh, who had the million dollar arm and the 10 cent brain.

Good to see paradigm has become part of his every-day lexicon.

Pronunciation: 'per-&-"dIm, 'pa-r&- also -"dim
Function: noun
Etymology: Late Latin paradigma, from Greek paradeigma, from paradeiknynai to show side by side, from para- + deiknynai to show -- more at DICTION
1 : EXAMPLE, PATTERN; especially : an outstandingly clear or typical example or archetype
2 : an example of a conjugation or declension showing a word in all its inflectional forms
3 : a philosophical and theoretical framework of a scientific school or discipline within which theories, laws, and generalizations and the experiments performed in support of them are formulated; broadly : a philosophical or theoretical framework of any kind
1 year ago
Source(s):
http://www.m-w.com/dictionary

We got an unexpected shoutout from the folks at the Final Score blog on their visit to Brett Favre's first practice on Saturday, although the headline - "Glauber and Boland welcome me into their bosom" - was undeniably creepy.

We do appreciate the kind words, though, and it's always a pleasure seeing this cross-pollination on the blogs. In fact, with the three-writer format of the "Final Score," we're actually somewhat jealous of the sheer volume of timely posts these guys churn out. Check out their latest post and weigh in on whether you think Favre is good or bad for the Jets. Jim Baumbach offers a surprising prediction that Tom Brady and Bill Belichick might find interesting.

In the interests of generating more blog posts, I think I might need to enlist Black N Gold, Sandy, BBiB!, Craig and Hookslide to send a bunch of stuff my way to flesh things out at those times when I need to do things like interview players and coaches, travel or take a shower.

I just called Brett Favre the Great Green-and-White Hope in a previous blog post.

I claim the nickname.

I probably need an attorney right now to patent the name, although I will settle for taking the credit. And if someone else wrote that before I did, forget I ever said anything about it.

(UPDATE: I have just Googled "Brett Favre and Great White Hope" and I don't see anything. It's mine, Boland.)

I admit to being one of the few skeptics about the Favre trade in the New York media, what with all the hyperventilating over the deal by many of my esteemed colleagues.

But in this case, it's another Glauber who predicts that it will end badly for the Great Green-and-White Hope. Bill Glauber, he of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel who grew up in the same house I did in White Plains, NY, has weighed in on the Favre saga from the Midwest. (Bill thinks it will end somewhat more pathetically than I do, but he generally finds the dark side of things rather quickly.)

Bill has a particularly strident line about fans that is probably easier to get away with in Milwaukee than New York: "It’s not even trying to figure out how he’ll deal with the New York media and sports-talk radio, otherwise known as all-blowhard all-the-time. (Note to Favre: "Joe from Jersey" hates his life but hates interceptions even more.)"

Bill brings an otherwise unique perspective to his readership; after all, like the rest of the five Glauber boys, he grew up a Jets fan when Joe Willie Namath was the squad's swashbuckling quarterback.

(We watched Super Bowl III on a grainy black-and-white television at a hotel in the Catskill Mountains called "The Gibber." It no longer exists. We will always remember an elderly couple that sat near us for the Saturday night entertainment. They were Mickey and Sofie, and they seemed quite happy, especially after downing a few cocktails. Boland, who would grow up to be a Browns fan, was not born yet. Nor was Rock, who would grow up to be a Redskins fan (Redskins?!?!) and then a schoolboy offensive lineman at Levittown's Division High before moving on to cover the Jets and now the Giants. I'm pretty sure Best was in his 20's when Joe Willie captured the hearts of New Yorkers.)

And that even applies when Favre makes a mistake in practice.

Mangini has a policy of making players run a lap when they make a mistake, and even a future Hall of Fame 38-year-old QB making $12 million has to pay the piper.

In fact, if Favre were the Jets' general manager, there's a pretty decent chance he'd think twice about dumping Pennington in a deal that would bring Favre to the Jets ... well, not really, but you know what I mean.

Seriously, Favre thinks Pennington is a good quarterback, and actually defends the biggest knock on Chad P: arm strength.

It was a compelling enough comment to build a Sunday column around. Thanks very much, Mr. Favre.

I assume there will be a few more columns you'll send out way in the coming weeks and months.

Wouldn't you like to know?

Unfortunately, Coles isn't talking.

He wasn't around after the preseason game against the Browns on Thursday night.

And he wasn't around after practice today, despite the fact several reporters asked to speak to him.

So, what's at work here? The hunch here is that Coles is none too happy about Chad Pennington being thrown overboard to make room for Brett Favre.

Coles has been a staunch supporter of Pennington over the years (they were both drafted in 2000), and it was Pennington who re-did his contract in 2005 to bring Coles back to the Jets in a trade with the Redskins. Coles was also not happy when the Jets benched Pennington last season in favor of Kellen Clemens.

Coles is one of the most thoughtful and outspoken players in the Jets' locker room, and he's got plenty of influence among his teammates. That's why it will be very interesting to see just what he has to say about the Favre trade.

If he has anything to say at all.

Jets fans certainly hope Favre eventually figures it out, but the 38-year-old quarterback admitted to a pretty significant case of doubt as he embarked on his career in New York.

Then again, perhaps by the time he chucks a few passes in his first practice tomorrow he'll feel a little better about the situation.

I wrote about Favre's admission that he is walking into the unknown here, and that the biggest challenge isn't on the field, but in the locker room. He needs to win over the hearts and minds of his players if this thing is going to work.

Really.

The former Browns quarterback, who was told 15 years ago by former coach Bill Belichick that "diminishing skills" were the reason the Browns were parting ways with the popular passer, freely admits to feeling that he can still put on a uniform and play in the NFL.

No, he has no plans to make a comeback. But he said as much to Cleveland Plain-Dealer columnist Bill Livingston in a compelling read about Kosar's take on why Brett Favre is coming back to the NFL for one more - at least - shot.

"I'm 44, and, in my head, I still think I can play," said Kosar, who does color analysis for Browns games and was on hand for last night's Browns-Jets game. Favre was introduced to the media a few minutes beforehand. "Mentally, I know I can still play. Physically, look how much bigger, stronger and faster players have gotten just since I was here, At the same time, quarterbacks are about the same size as they've been for years."

Kosar on the Favre situation:

"The Packers drafted Aaron Rodgers No. 1, and now he can be a free agent next season. They can't never let him play," he said. "What if Brett came back there and only played one year? The Packers have to find out if they want to sign Aaron Rodgers or not."

More on Favre:

"It's ego," he said. "Brett wants to show the Packers, his new teammates, and the fans that he can still do it. But he has to show himself too."

And as Rock tells us from Detroit, one of those teams is the Giants.

Another team is Miami.

Not bad for a 32-year-old quarterback thrown into the waste basket by the Jets. The quarterback the Jets traded for, iconic Brett Favre, drew interest from only two teams.

I realize it's somewhat apples and oranges because Pennington is available for no draft choice compensation while Favre was only gettable in a trade.

But it says something that Pennington has drawn this much interest just hours after being dumped.

Stay tuned.

Uh oh, La Monica here, and I just won a hostile takeover of Glauber's blog (moments after staging a coup in Boland's Jets blog, too!).

But I will relinquish control just as soon as I paste in some code that will let a video display underneath this amazing paragraph of text that lets you we asked fans around Long Island for their thoughts on the Jets acquiring Brett Favre.

We now return to your regularly scheduled Glaubering.

Walking to Cleveland Browns Stadium a few minutes ago, I passed a makeshift concession stand where two guys were selling Browns jerseys and other paraphernalia - and Brett Favre knockoff T-shirts.

I asked one of the guys how much the t-shirts were going for and he responded: "Are you a cop?"

After assuring him I was simply a curious reporter, he said the t-shirts were $10 each. His buddy then quipped, "Two for $20."

The interview room here in the bowels of Cleveland Browns Stadium is buzzing as we await the appearance of Brett Favre for his first public appearance since being traded to the Jets late last night.

Favre is about to speak alongside team owner Woody Johnson and general manager Mike Tannenbaum.

Sorry for the lack of blogging today. It is not easy to drive, fly and get to a stadium and type at the same time. My apologies.

Here's the column I wrote for the newspaper when it was still between the Jets and Bucs for acquiring Favre's services.

I'm sure a large segment of Jets' fans is ecstatic over the trade, although I'm still skeptical that a 38-year-old Favre playing with a new team will not be a magic bullet.

As always, I am certainly open to being proven wrong. Welcome to New York, Mr. Favre.

Incredible.

The Jets have landed the Packers' Hall of Fame quarterback in a trade that will surely go down as one of the biggest in team history.

Wow.

I realize these polls are unscientific, but they are interesting nonetheless. You know, the flash polls that ask you the simple question like: Which quarterback do you want to play for the Jets: