Favre's illegal block draws mixed reviews

HOUSTON - Quarterback Brett Favre created perhaps a bigger buzz with a block than he did directing the Vikings offense in a 17-10 victory over the Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium on Monday night.

Favre's illegal block to safety Eugene Wilson's knees drew a 15-yard penalty and was a hot topic inside the locker room afterward.

"I liked it," Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe said. "Hey, it's man eat man out here. You better keep your eyes on a swivel. He saw Brett out there and said, 'Ah, Brett ain't going to do anything.'"

The play came in the third quarter with the Vikings lined up in the Wildcat formation. Percy Harvin lined up in the backfield while Favre split out wide left.

Harvin took the snap and ran to his left. Favre peeled back to block and went low on Wilson, who did not see the hit coming. Wilson immediately grabbed his left knee in obvious pain and left the game. Favre was called for an illegal crackback block.

Afterward, Favre said he didn't intend to injure Wilson but felt he had little choice but to protect Harvin.

"Percy was running my way," Favre said. "Believe me, I hope [Wilson] is OK. I hope it didn't look as bad on film as it may have seemed but my intentions, believe me, were not to hurt anyone, including myself. ... But I think had I not blocked anyone and just got out of the way and Percy gets hit and gets hurt, I think that looks worse. But once again I hope he's OK. Believe me, my intentions were not to be cheap.

"... I'll be 40 years old in October and was weeding 13 days ago. I wasn't thinking about throwing blocks."

Harvin said he appreciated the help.

"Actually he kind of scared me because I kind of forgot he was out there," Harvin said. "After I turned the corner I saw him flash across my face. It was good to see him still get down a little. I appreciated the block."

Said running back Adrian Peterson: "He's just playing ball. I'm sure he wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt the guy. He's just out there playing ball."

Not surprisingly, Wilson viewed it differently.

"I don't have too much to say about it," Wilson said. "I didn't speak to him about it, to see if it was on purpose or not."

Asked what he would say to Favre, Wilson said: "What was up with that? Seriously, what was up with that?"

Wide receiver Bernard Berrian went through warmups but he missed his second consecutive game because of a hamstring injury.

Vikings coach Brad Childress did not express concern about Berrian after the game, saying the receiver is getting "better and better."

Childress is hoping Berrian can do more in practice this week. "The big thing is he can open it up and play full speed all the time," Childress said.

Tight end Jim Kleinsasser also did not play because of a hand injury. Kleinsasser has been in a cast since suffering the injury in the preseason opener against the Indianapolis Colts.

• Vikings owner Zygi Wilf and other team officials stopped in Dallas on their way to Houston to get a tour of the Cowboys' new $1.1 billion stadium. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones provided the tour, and HKS Architects and Cisco (technology) were available to answer questions. The Vikings execs were able to see the stadium with the roof and end zone windows open.

• The Vikings must trim their roster to 75 players today. They were at 79 players Monday.