Much of the focus ahead of tonight's game has been how the Patriots are going to play the Buccaneers on the field. Basically, how is Bill Belichick going to make sure Tom Brady doesn't blow his team out on national television, and possibly give the Patriots a chance to win the game?
But what about the flip side of that.
How is Brady preparing to face so many familiar faces, and to stick it to those he, real or perceived, think did him wrong and forced his exit, namely Belichick and Robert Kraft? There are rumors the Bucs have stayed late at the facility this week, and the Brady has been pulling coach-like hours to leave no stone unturned to prepare the Bucs for what Belichick will throw at them. But is that really true?
The circumstances heading into this game are almost totally unique in recent NFL history.
Dan Marino, John Elway and Drew Brees all retired with the team that either drafted them, or the team they played the bulk of their career with (Brees).
Joe Montana never got to go back to Candlestick, although he faced the 49ers and Steve Young in Kansas City (Montana lost). Peyton Manning returned (and lost) as a Bronco in Indianapolis, but Manning didn't leave under acrimonious terms as Brady did. An injury (which no one was certain he would be able to return from) caused his exit and Manning understood.
There is only one other circumstance in the modern NFL when a former iconic quarterback, who felt he was forced to leave the only team he ever knew, returned to face his former team and face down his adversaries: Brett Favre at Lambeau Field vs. the Packers on Nov. 1, 2009. Amazingly, Favre was 40 at the time. Considering the life he had led and the way he played, that's pretty close to Brady's 44 entering Sunday night.
What was Favre like in the lead-up to that game? Was his preparation any different? Did he share intel with his teammates? Was he nervous before that game? Did he care at all about the fans?
BostonSportsJournal.com talked this week with Sage Rosenfels, Favre's backup with the Vikings, to get some insight into Favre's preparation in his return to Lambeau and what Brady might have gone through this week, and will go through tonight.
Even though the Vikings had already faced and beat the Packers at the Metrodome a few weeks earlier (Minnesota won 30-23 with Favre a sterling 24 of 31 for 271 yards and three touchdowns for a 135.3 passer rating), Rosenfels said ...
Preparing to return to Lambeau was completely different for Favre, Vikings.
"Absolutely, Brett was a different person that week," said Rosenfels. "We played St. Louis at some point that year and they weren't very good and I've never seen a looser quarterback in the locker room, cracking jokes, doing the Brett thing as if we're going out for a preseason scrimmage or something.
"In this game, during the week, he was extremely focused and serious and definitely doing whatever he could think of to help our team: talking to defensive coordinators, talking about a lot of the guys that were there that he didn't think were good or were good, guys we had to worry about. It just felt, 'Like leave no stone unturned,' for a guy who usually didn't play that way. He wasn't the guy that worried about every detail, generally, and I think that was one of his strengths. And in this game, in particular, going back to Lambeau, he was really doing whatever he could to win those games. I think he did want to stick it to the Packers and the head coach and the GM and all that."
Did Favre get up in front of the team at any point, give a detailed breakdown, tell the players what that game meant to him?
"He didn't have to," Rosenfels said. "Everyone knew. As soon as the previous game ended, everyone knew we're playing Green Bay. And, of course, Vikings-Green Bay is always a rivalry. Everyone knew we wanted to win this one for Brett. We were gonna try to get a Super Bowl and build the team and have the chemistry and all the things you need. Everyone was solely focused on not just winning that game to help us in the division or help us in the NFC race or whatever, but really to win that game for Favre. We knew how important it was to him. I think that automatically made it important to every single person in the organization, not just on the team, the organization felt like it had a little extra seriousness that week. Everyone, and I mean everyone, wanted to win that game for Brett more than the team.
"I don't think meetings went longer but I will say, it felt like a playoff game that people were the most dialed in, the most attention to detail it had been up to that point in the season."
What was Favre like before taking the field?
"He was very nervous before the game," Rosenfels said. "My locker was right next to his. He wasn't trembling before the game, but he was noticeably nervous and almost uncomfortable in that locker room before the game. I think it's because he wanted to win so badly, for one.
"You could tell his hands were not relaxed, his hands were lightly almost shaking. Brett and I were sort of talking about it and he goes, 'Sage, you don't realize how hard is to go out there every time and be Brett Favre and to try to have to make magic happen every week.' And I think the pressure of that was extremely hard. He didn't play quarterback like the average person, he went out and made magic happen. He didn't just go out there and execute. And to do that for as long as he did it, I'm sure it can be exhausting. And I do feel like he felt a lot of pressure going into that game to perform and to be magical in front of those Packer fans, he thought, maybe, one last time. And he was, he played basically a perfect game.
"There was a spot before half, one of my other distinct memories, where we're driving. I think we're getting close to field goal range, maybe we had call timeout (with 48 seconds left). He came over and I said something like, 'Hey, we got three points, let's not do anything stupid.' And he looks at me like, 'We got score touchdown. (Expletive) the field goal.' (Vikings threw on the next down and one more before settling for a field goal to lead 17-3 at halftime).
(Rich Gabrielson/Icon SMI/Icon Sport Media via Getty Images)
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre (4) talks with Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sage Rosenfels (2) before the game. The Minnesota Vikings defeated the Green Bay Packers by a score of 38 to 26 at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, WI.
Did Favre give any consideration to how he would be received by fans?
"Brett's very aware," Rosenfels said. "For a guy who's a gunslinger, he's very aware of the perception about him and what people think of him. He does want people to think very highly of him, as most people do. But I think going back to Green Bay, he really was concerned that Packers fans had turned on him and were upset with him, and I think that did sort of bother him. For somebody that put 17 years or something into that franchise, that there was a noticeable consternation or stress about how Packers fans were going to treat him ... are they going to boo him? No one wants to go back to their old team and get booed. I think winning that game was just a massive relief for Brett, more than anything."
The aftermath of the game: exhaustion.
"When you have a game like this, and everyone says it was just treated as just another game, but when you put that much pressure on yourself from the moment you wake up on Monday morning and really probably when the game ends on Sunday, a game like this you really start thinking about immediately, it's just human nature. And, you know, to do that for basically seven straight days is exhausting. I remember after our NFC Championship game against the Saints, the bounty-gate game, I didn't even play a down but I was so exhausted from the preparation and stress and anxiety of going into that game and, and the game plan, it does take a toll on you. And I do think this one (Patriots-Bucs) is different in the sense it's an NFC/AFC game, and that the New England isn't very good. At the time, (Packers-Vikings) was two teams, truly, trying to win that division and the conference and were a few hundred miles apart. Yeah, I do think it was more stressful, I would have to think. I don't think Tom Brady is sitting there completely stressed all week about this game. But as opposed to some other teams, New England's one of those teams that usually give you a lot of looks, and they do whatever they can to break down your protection issues, and I'm sure that's what Tom's been putting in all that extra work for."
Favre's Vikings built a 24-3 lead in the third quarter before the Packers made it a one-score game midway through the fourth quarter. The Vikings won 38-26 as Favre was 18 of 28 for 244 yards and four touchdowns (128.6 rating).
In two games against his former team in 2009, Favre was 2-0, completed 69 percent of his passes, threw seven touchdowns and had a 136.1 passer rating.
NICKEL PACKAGE
1. Yes, Tom Brady definitely could have overprepared this week. And he hasn't started Super Bowls well with two weeks to prepare and all that jazz. But if Brady were on the Patriots, we'd all be talking about how he always comes through, about how you should never underestimate Brady. Why should this be any different? There has literally never been a stage too big for Brady, and this one won't be as well.
2. An even bigger factor will be how Brady's Bucs teammates will have his back. The unfocused Bucs will be more focused than ever. They won't let Brady fail, much the same way the Vikings wouldn't let Favre fail at Lambeau, and how the Packers wouldn't let Favre fail in that Monday night game against the Raiders after his father died.
3. That being said, a lot of good can come out of this game for the Patriots (maybe not Belichick), even with a loss. This team has yet to find its unifying moment, a reason to kick things into gear. If the Patriots can at least make a game of this, it might be just the thing to get them going in the right direction. Similar to the Giants' regular-season loss to the Patriots in 2007. We all know what happened after that.
4. I wish you all good luck enduring this. If you thought it took forever for Super Bowls to kickoff, this will be excruciating. And then the game will be a whole 'nother beast. I hope you find some enjoyment out of it, and aren't tortured too much by the sight of Brady and the histrionics of the telecast.
5. My BetUs.com Best Bets (2-1 last week)
Panthers (+4) at Cowboys
I'm riding Carolina until it bucks me. Could happen in the Lone Star State.
49ers (-2.5) vs. Seahawks
San Francisco is just more talented. Doesn't mean they'll win, but usually it does.
Chargers (-3) vs. Raiders (Monday night)
Vegas is way overinflated at this point, and has had a good string of luck. That's bound to end.