FAVRE HOLDS MEETING TO SALVAGE VIKINGS’ TEAM CHEMISTRY

Now that Brett Favre is done inflicting his annual self imposed retirement drama on the football world, he’s trying to mend fence with coaching staff and teammates.  Since returning to the Vikings the NFL’s biggest diva has held two closed door meetings to ‘clear the air’ and stress his ‘commitment’ to the success of the team.  The first meeting was similar to last year’s meeting where Favre stressed his commitment to the Vikings and his teammates despite his antics of earlier this summer.  This year, he called a second meeting to address a media report that he almost decided against coming back due to his disdain for head coach Brad Childress.

In Favre’s mind, the entire NFL rotates around him at the axis so he wanted to hold a sequel to last year’s meeting and let the team know he’s ‘all in’:

"I did feel -- more so than last year, believe it or not -- I needed them to know I'm all in. Not that they didn't know. I think they did just from me being there. And that was kind of the mantra from all of those guys: 'We knew if we got you here, we were going to get you and you'd be all in.' ... The hardest part for me is leaving Hattiesburg and the tranquility and that stuff, leaving that. But when I left it, I knew it was nose to the grindstone for five months now."

Favre later detailed what took place at the second meeting called to discuss the Yahoo Sports story that the offense—and him in particular—had no respect for head coach Childress:

"If something is being said in here -- by whoever -- it's got to stop. It's hard enough to win as it is. Success does crazy things. So we had a good meeting. ... The schism thing brought us together last year. It really did because it wasn't true. I don't know if someone out there is planting seeds or what, but we wanted to nip it in the bud."

"The guys who spoke in that meeting, each guy said, 'Hey, if someone has a problem with Brad or another player or another coach in here, speak up.' No one, obviously, spoke up. That's not to say that there wouldn't be someone who would say that, but I don't believe it. I really don't. That was addressed, and I think that's behind us now."

The good news is that if last year is an indication all of the drama will quiet down once the regular season begins.  The Vikings will open the season on the road as they play the Superbowl Champion New Orleans Saints on Thursday, September 9th.  Minnesota is a +4 point NFL football betting underdog in that contest, with the total set at 49.