Brett Favre is on his way to Minnesota right now (or may already be there) to sign a contract that will pay him $12 million to play quarterback for the Vikings this season. If you weren’t aware of that fact already, don’t worry. ESPN has already sent reporters door to door across the country to personally inform them of this development. It’s part of their new FavreWatch program, in which news about Favre is, quite literally, shoved down your throat. Hope you have an insensitive gag reflex.
Favre’s signing means little to the Cowboys. They, of course, had no interest in signing the Land Baron. As far as competition within the NFC, Favre’s signing maybe hurts the chances of the Cowboys securing a Wild Card spot should they and the Vikes both fail to win their respective divisions. But that’s projecting pretty far ahead.
What Favre’s signing does do is highlight just how delightfully uneventful Cowboys camp has been thus far. First we had last week, with Michael Vick joining the Eagles. Now it’s Favre occupying this week’s news cycle with his signing. Both quarterbacks figure to monopolize the better portion of national NFL coverage during most of the year. On some level, it has to kill the Double J to see that happen. The man loves to see his stars shine the brightest.
But the Cowboys spent this offseason deliberately purging themselves of drama: Pacman Jones, Tank Johnson, TO, and such & such. This relatively tranquil training camp is the payoff for those efforts. The idea is that, while the team may be keeping a low profile now, they’ll occupy the main stage in January when it, you know, actually matters.
There’s no statistical evidence that a quieter camp makes for a more successful year. Indeed, the Cowboys had their most success in the Double J era during the Jimmy Johnson/Switzer years, where melodrama clung to the team at every turn. But that was a different NFL. The current NFL is ruled by the likes of the Steelers, Patriots, and Colts: teams that often make it a point to go about their business quietly (and in the case of the Pats, devoid of any human emotion).
So now the Cowboys will try it their way. And if it doesn’t work, expect the team to go back to the old way of doing things next year, perhaps signing the occasional puppy killer or wishy-washy old man.