Favre Saves Vikings, Himself, and NFL

Like it or not cheeseheads, the magic is back; and you have a date with it next Monday night.

Brett Favre erased an otherwise forgettable second half of three-and-out's, an interception, and a turnover on downs by throwing the game-winner against the San Francisco 49ers.

But it wasn't so cut and dry as that; after all, with Favre, it rarely is.

On third and three from the 49ers 32-yard line, Favre dropped back, rolled to his right, avoided a sack, and then launched one of his classic bullets jut before getting thrown to the turf. Greg Lewis did the rest, stretching his entire body out, making the catch, and then possessing the awareness to come down with both feet in bounds.

No, really, watch this one again. It's one for the ages.

With Adrian Peterson being locked down outside of a nice 35-yard run, the rest was on Favre and the Vikings defense. When the defense began to cave, Favre and the Vikings got one last crack at it, and then lost their chance after Favre incompleted a pass on fourth down with two minutes remaining.

At least, that's what they thought.

The Vikings defense turned things around and held the 49ers to a three-and-out on the next possession, giving Favre one last shot at making things right. One last shot at restoring the magic, validating the big-money signing, and one last shot at injecting life into the Minnesota faithful.

After failing to top 155 passing yards in his first two games due to a conservative offense, Favre was finally unleashed, as he passed the ball 47 times en route to 301 yards and two touchdowns; the last one putting an epic stamp on Favre's new presence as a Minnesota quarterback.

Favre quickly led the Vikings down the field from his 20-yard line, as he completed six passes, including the final throw, as he was calm and cool- exactly what the Vikings thought they had paid for.

After his throw sent the Minnesota crowd into a frenzy, Favre only had enough strength to lift his head, watch what he had created come to life, and then, dropped his face into the turf exhausted.

Now, with Green Bay coming into town next Monday night, Favre and the rest of the offense will have to regroup, correct the mistakes that stalled their early success, and do everything possible to ensure that whatever magic was in that stadium Sunday afternoon, stays there.

It's like Jared Allen said, "Be Brett. Just one time. Be Brett."

And thankfully, for all the purple-people-eaters out there, Favre found his "ness." His Favre-ness.

It's moments like these that remind us what football is all about, and why Brett Favre, for as long as he desires to, is more than welcome to be a part of them.

This may not validate the Vikings signing Favre quite yet, despite five touchdowns and only one interception, as well as a 3-0 record. But it's sure one hell of a start.