Though a core of key players and team leaders apparently support the anointment of 39-year-old quarterback Brett Favre as the starter for the Vikings, talk continues to persist that not all of the players who wear purple are on the same page.
Per a source with knowledge of the locker-room dynamics in Minnesota, there’s a “faction” that still prefers Tarvaris Jackson.
According to the source, this “faction” of for now undetermined size regards Favre as an “old guy” with talents inferior to those possessed by Jackson.
For now, it’s an issue that remains beneath the surface, but not by very many layers. If the Vikings struggle early in the season, the rumblings could start -- and coach Brad Childress would be facing a real problem.
Though many think that Childress won’t be able to bench Favre if the future Hall of Famer struggles like he did down the stretch last season in New York, we think that the coach’s self-preservation instinct will overcome his desire to remain Brett’s newest BFF.
The coach surely realizes that anything short of an appearance in the NFC title game will put his job in real jeopardy; thus, if the coach concludes that Jackson gives them the better chance to win, we think the coach will yank Favre as quickly as he pulled Jackson last season in favor of the most recent “old guy” on the roster, Gus Frerotte.
And if the ensuing strain gets Brett to quit publicly calling his boss “Chilly,” the coach should consider that to be a bonus.