It's just, every time I was thisclose to completing whatever it was I was working on, something unanticipated would compromise the direction of my story.
Jrue Holiday, the "future" of the Philadelphia 76ers backcourt, was the subject of one such story -- until he struggled to get on the floor this preseason. Today, eight games into the Sixers regular season, Holiday is last on the team in minutes played.
A few weeks ago I started another about the Phillies big-name pitching acquisitions. And I was really looking forward to it. But as you could imagine, the last few nights of the World Series took the wind out of my sails.
The Denver Broncos hot start was the focus of yet another fine piece of work by yours truly. I had planned on writing about how Josh McDaniels' resolve has led the Broncos to an undefeated start. Then they lost two straight.
So instead I'm writing about a guy who's never changed, about a guy who's been as reliable for a story over the last eighteen years as he's been for a start.
His name is Brett Favre. And on the first day of November, Ol' Brett reminded us why he's one of the most revered figures in professional sports.
Playing against the team that he called his own for nearly two decades, in the stadium in which he set countless NFL records, Brett led the Minnesota Vikings to a huge road win over the rival Packers.
In a game filled with both storylines and emotion, Number Four stole the show by passing for four touchdowns and leading the Vikings to a 12-point win in his first and only career game on the opposing sideline of Lambeau.
It was an emphatic performance from Favre: 17 of 28 for 244 yards, 4 touchdowns (to four different players), and 0 interceptions.
His last two touchdowns, each coming in the fourth quarter, extended the Vikings' lead from single-digits to double-digits, the latter being the straw that broke the camel's back.
With that win the first-place Vikes moved 2.5 games ahead of the second-place Pack in the NFC North. And after a bye in Week Nine, coupled with a Packer upset in Tampa, the Vikings now find themselves three games ahead in the Black and Blue.
But years from now, statistics won't be the only thing I'll remember about this game.
I'll remember Brett's child-like enthusiasm when his team scored -- jumping up and down, arms raised, more excited than anyone in the stadium.
I'll remember the compassion he showed when one of his former receivers, Greg Jennings, appeared to be injured near the Viking sideline -- how he took a knee next to Jennings, made sure he was okay, and as Jennings walked away, said something to him that triggered a smile.
I'll remember his clutch play when the game was tight -- highlighted by those two fourth quarter touchdowns to Jeff Dugan and Bernard Berrian.
These are the moments that move people. These are the moments that have made Brett Favre who he is, that have transformed him from small-town Mississippi boy to NFL icon.
Favre plays and speaks from the heart. And that's what Americans like to see. They want an athlete they can relate to, an athlete that can relate to them.
With Brett Favre, you know what you're going to get. I wouldn't dare call him predictable -- but he is reliable. And I mean that in more ways than one.
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