Favre, Minnesota Vikings Dominate Dallas Cowboys

NFL News - January 17th, 2010 - Written by John

This is why Sage Rosenfels and Tarvaris Jackson just wouldn't do.

Why Brad Childress personally chauffeured Brett Favre from the airport when he came out of retirement. Why he didn't make a stink when Favre began manipulating the playcalling on the fly during the 2009 NFL Season.

Childress brought football's longest tenured quarterback in hopes of pushing the Minnesota Vikings over the hump, and now the NFC North champs are one win away from the Super Bowl for the first time since 2001.

Favre threw for 247 yards and four touchdowns, three to Sidney Rice, and the Vikings defense did the rest en route to a 34-3 win against the Dallas Cowboys that covered the one-point spread in most NFL Betting Lines.

And just like that, Favre will be returning to the NFC Championship for the first time since leaving the Green Bay Packers in 2007.

"I can't say enough about our team for rising to the occasion," Favre told CBS after the game. "I can't say enough about our defense and if you were here u could hear how loud it was."

The Vikings joined the Saints and Colts as big winners at home in the second round, and will now have to find a way to win in New Orleans in a loud Superdome.

"Well I'm concerned like I was going in this game," Favre said. "I watched that game yesterday and I'm well aware of what were up against. And their defense is paying like the offense. They're attacking."

Not everyone was impressed by Favre, and his final 11-yard score ruffled some feathers on the Cowboys sideline.

Minnesota led by 24 with just under two minutes remaining and was faced with a third down deep in Dallas territory. Instead of icing the game with another run, Favre rolled out on a playaction and floated a pass to wide open Visanthe Shiancoe. Several members of the Cowboys defense, particularly Keith Brooking, took exception to the excess scoring and caused a brief stir on the field.

But that's as much of a fight as Dallas put up all day.

Rice finished the day with a game-high 141 yards and all three of his touchdowns were uncontested, two of them coming on long bombs in which the defender hardly even put up a fight.

"One thing is (Rice) has is great speed and great ball control," Favre raved. "We knew we'd have to earn everything. He' a great payer...I mean we only threw the ball 24 times, and it was the quality not quantity. We didn't turn the ball over and we just executed."

Not so much for the Cowboys.

Part of Dallas' recent success had been the fact that Tony Romo's ability to protect the football through December, throwing 13 touchdowns with only two turnovers since Week 11. But it didn't help that his offensive line was being absolutely mauled for most of the game, and Romo fumbled three times before the half. Flozell Adams was lifted early in the game, forcing Doug Free to move into his spot.

But Free was already being used to spell Marc Columbo, who was being destroyed on the left side by Ray Edwards, and Columbo had to return to the game because of Adams' injury.

Edwards ended up with five tackles, three sacks and four tackles for loss, and the defensive line kept Romo on the run most of the game. On his interception in the third quarter, Romo couldn't even see where he was throwing, and the ball ended up in Ben Leber's lap.

Dallas was 0-2 on fourth-down conversions, and Romo only had 156 passing yards.

The Cowboys are in for another long offseason after winning their first playoff game in 14 years. It is believed that head coach Wade Phillips has already secured an extension for two more years with the team, but owner Jerry Jones may take a bit longer in pulling the trigger.