FanHouse Tarvaris Jackson

When the Vikings and Brett Favre ended their dance and finally agreed to become an item, it was assumed that Tarvaris Jackson would be getting the short end of the straw. It was Jackson's play the last few seasons, after all, that led to the need for a new starter. Sage Rosenfels, the new acquisition via trade, and John David Booty, the developmental quarterback, seemed safe.

Yet Saturday, when the axe fell on the Vikings roster in their pursuit to trim to 53 players, it was Booty who found himself out of a job.

When Brett Favre announced that he was coming out of retirement again, Vikings fans quickly rushed to buy tickets. But ESPN.com's Adam Schefter and Pro Football Talk are both reporting that the response within the Vikings locker room was much chillier.

Schefter has the strongest report, as he cites three different NFL sources as saying that there is dissension among the players about which quarterback gives the team the best chance to win. One of the sources called it a "schism."

Surely, some football fans have taken potshots at the NFL media for their coverage of Brett Favre over the years. One of the bigger targets has been Sports Illustrated's Peter King, who's enjoyed a good relationship with the legendary quarterback.

With Favre's latest comeback -- this time with the Minnesota Vikings -- now official, the magazine has decided to try something different. The latest issue of SI, dated Aug. 31, is said to be "Favre-Free."

The Jets' visit to Baltimore on Monday stands to be one of the preseason's most interesting games (oxymoron? Yes), namely because of former Ravens defensive coordinator and current New York head coach Rex Ryan's return to face his former team.

Beyond Ryan's homecoming, a subplot worth watching centers around Ravens backup quarterback Troy Smith.

Ever since Joe Flacco took control of Baltimore's QB position last season, Smith's been the subject of lots of idle trade speculation -- the rumors cranked up this offseason, too, as the Ravens searched for some wide receiver help. And while the Ravens have never outwardly expressed a desire to deal Smith, there's a chance that Smith's reaching the end of the line in Baltimore.

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For Andy Reid, it could be a move that cements his reputation in Philadelphia. Meanwhile, Brad Childress is trying to change the perception about his career as a head coach in Minnesota.

MINNEAPOLIS -- The best quarterback on the field Friday night played for the Vikings, but he didn't wear No. 4 and he's nowhere near 40 years old. The best Vikings quarterback in this game was Tarvaris Jackson, who lost his chance to be the starter when the team signed Brett Favre earlier in the week, who might still get traded before the season starts and whose performance was summed up by Vikings coach Brad Childress with a single word.

"Perfect," Childress said. "Look up the numbers. It was perfect. That's what the numbers say. He was perfect."

And indeed he was. Jackson's quarterback rating for the game was a 158.3, which is the highest number attainable by the byzantine formula that calculates that statistic. He completed 12-of-15 passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns, including a 64-yarder to Darius Reynaud in the third quarter. And if teams were looking at this game to see if they might want to trade for Jackson, he didn't do anything to hurt his case.

All right, Brett Favre. All right, you maddening flip-flopper and hopeless egomaniac. You asked for it. Last month, when you decided to stay retired after retiring and unretiring and retiring in an 18-month drama requiring daily Dramamine, I wrote the following: "This is it as a football player, Brett. Or else a country that once wanted to love you will view you as a psychotic laughingstock, if it doesn't already.''

Today, America views Favre as a psychotic laughingstock. Because there he was Tuesday, in purple shorts and a purple helmet, wearing his No. 4 as he trotted onto a practice field with the Minnesota Vikings. Why he changes his mind the way the rest of us change boxer briefs, I could not explain if I consulted 100 of the world's leading shrinks. But it's a fair bet that Favre was playing a con game with the Vikings and the rest of us all along, not wanting to participate in offseason mini-camps, organized team activities and the dreadful early stages of training camp. He showed up when he wanted, days before the second preseason game Friday night in the Metrodome -- where he'll be the starting quarterback, of course, so the Vikings can sell more tickets and ramp up sales for those $259 FAVRE jerseys.

At first I didn't know whether to laugh or send the Minnesota Vikings the name of a good psychiatrist. They obviously need one to deal with their codependency issues with Brett Favre.

Then it hit me. So what if they are destined to end up killing each other? That's their problem. We have just been handed one of the most entertaining stories of the year.

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Brett Favre passed his physical and signed a contract with the Minnesota Vikings on Tuesday says FanHouse's own Calvin Watkins in an exclusive report.

Favre was at practice on Tuesday afternoon, although he did not participate in contact drills. The plan is to have Favre start Friday night's preseason game, just three days away.

It's difficult to imagine the 39-year-old veteran will surpass his 2008 statistics with the Jets where he threw for 3,472 yards with 22 touchdowns and 22 interceptions. But, considering the Vikings were willing to pay so much and disrupt team chemistry to bring Favre in this late in camp, proves that they feel optimistic. In 2008, Gus Frerotte and Tarvaris Jackson combined for 3,213 yards with 21 touchdowns and 17 interceptions for the Vikings.

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It's only one game, but if you're trying to figure out who is leading the Vikings' quarterback battle, right now you should be putting your money on Sage Rosenfels.

Rosenfels looked very polished and accurate in his first chance to run the Vikings offense. He completed 10 of 13 passes for 91 yards, led the Vikings on an 11-play touchdown drive on his first series and followed it up with a 13-play drive that ended in a field goal.