NFL Rewind

STORY OF THE WEEK

Brett Favre’s final game with the Green Bay Packers ended with an ugly throw. The pass was intercepted by Corey Webster, setting up the field goal that gave the New York Giants the 2007 NFC championship.

Still, Favre continued to be popular in the city after he retired in April 2008. His steakhouse not far from Lambeau Field remained prosperous, and fans were somewhat understanding of his decision to come out of retirement and play for the New York Jets last fall, blaming it in part on Packers general manager Ted Thompson.

But this — Favre playing quarterback for archrival Minnesota — was too much to bear for Packers fans, who felt even worse after Sunday. In his first return to Lambeau more than 21 months after his exit, Favre was booed. And booed some more. Then, of course, he was brilliant, completing 17 of 28 passes for 244 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions to lead the Vikings to a 38-26 victory. The win gave Minnesota a 7-1 record, a sweep of the Packers and a three-game lead over Green Bay and Chicago in the NFC North.

In his two games against Green Bay, Favre passed for 515 yards and seven touchdowns without being intercepted or sacked. Successor Aaron Rodgers, meanwhile, was sacked six times Sunday.

Minnesota rebounded smartly from last week’s loss in Pittsburgh and headed into its bye thankful for the 40-year-old Favre’s still-golden presence.

TEAM OF THE WEEK

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

Playing without injured running back Brian Westbrook, the Philadelphia Eagles certainly showed they still have plenty of weapons as they crushed the Giants 40-17 to improve to 5-2.

Philadelphia led 17-0 just nine seconds into the second quarter and 30-7 at halftime. Five Eagles scored on plays of 17 yards or more. With a 54-yard catch for a score, DeSean Jackson equaled Hall of Famer Crazylegs Hirsch’s record of six touchdowns of at least 50 yards in the first seven games of a season.

FIVE TRENDS FROM WEEK 8

UP: Tennessee and St. Louis both got off the schneid but in different ways. The Rams held the Lions to 289 yards in a 17-10 road triumph, and Chris Johnson ripped off touchdown runs of 52 and 89 yards in Vince Young’s return to the starting quarterback job as the host Titans won 30-13 against Jacksonville.

DOWN: Arizona has never traveled well, but the Cardinals are 3-0 on the road this year. However, Arizona is 1-3 at home after losing to Carolina 34-21 on Sunday as Kurt Warner threw five interceptions. Good thing the Cardinals play at Chicago this week.

UP: While New York and Philadelphia have captured most of the attention in the NFC East, Dallas quietly has won four of five to tie the Eagles for the division lead heading into Sunday’s showdown in Philadelphia. Sunday’s 38-17 rout of Seattle was another big day for Tony Romo, who threw three more touchdown passes.

DOWN: Buffalo’s winning streak lasted all of two games before visiting Houston spoiled the era of good feelings with a 31-10 smack to the chops Sunday. With Ryan Fitzpatrick continuing to fill in for injured quarterback Trent Edwards, the Bills managed just 204 yards and fell to 3-5.

UP: Baltimore had lost three in a row after a 3-0 start. Unbeaten Denver was coming to town to face a suddenly vulnerable Ravens defense. That changed Sunday as Jarret Johnson sacked Kyle Orton on the game’s first play, and the Ravens recaptured their usual form by holding the Broncos to 200 yards in a 30-7 victory.

NEXT MAN UP

List of big injuries from Week 8:

TE Owen Daniels (knee), Houston: Matt Schaub lost his reliable safety valve when the Pro Bowl tight end’s right knee got caught in the turf during the Texans’ second series against Buffalo. Daniels tore his right ACL and will miss the rest of the season. He was replaced by Joel Dreessen, who has just 25 catches in four seasons.

OT Joe Staley (knee), San Francisco: The linchpin of the 49ers’ offense, the left tackle sprained his right knee during the first play of the 18-14 loss at Indianapolis and didn’t return. He was replaced by journeyman Barry Sims.

QB Jake Delhomme (chest), Carolina: The NFL’s interceptions leader did not add to his total before being hit by Arizona’s Chike Okeafor and Darnell Dockett late in the third quarter. Feeling weak and chilly, Delhomme was taken to a hospital but flew back home with the Panthers after their 34-21 victory, having escaped with only a contusion.

WR Anquan Boldin (ankle), Arizona: Questionable all week because of a sprained right ankle, Boldin aggravated the injury in the third quarter against the Panthers and didn’t return. Boldin did catch three passes to pass Larry Centers as the Cardinals’ career leader with 537 receptions. Steve Breaston took Boldin’s place.

DT Haloti Ngata (ankle), Baltimore: The massive nose tackle sprained his ankle during the Ravens’ victory over Denver and didn’t return. X-rays were negative.

NUMBERS GAME

Interesting stat about the Week 8 games:

2 Kickoff returns for touchdowns by Miami’s Ted Ginn covering 100 and 101 yards. Ginn became the first player with a pair of touchdowns of at least 100 yards in the same game. Both were in the third quarter.

HOT SEAT

Whose performance in Week 8 puts him in the spotlight for next week:

BILL SHERIDAN

Sheridan’s New York Giants defense was strafed for a third straight week. Sunday’s 40-17 loss to Philadelphia not only gave the Giants three consecutive defeats for the first time since December 2006, but it also dropped them behind the Eagles and Cowboys in the NFC East. Sheridan presides over a defense that surrendered 1,172 yards and 112 points the past three weeks to New Orleans, Arizona and Philadelphia. It doesn’t get easier in the next five games: San Diego, Atlanta, Denver, Dallas and the Eagles again.