If it seems as if I've been away for a while, then you're right, I have. I was on the East Coast starting last Thursday and ending yesterday. Of course, that didn't stop me from watching the Minnesota Vikings squander the opportunity to get to 3-3, against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night. Frankly, I almost wish that I hadn't, but there is something to be said for holding to one's responsibilities. First things first. NFL officials are human beings, and while there should be an expectation that their calls will always be demonstrably correct and reflect sound judgment, we all know that it doesn't always work out that way. The touchdown reception by Packers rookie TE Andrew Quarless was a terrible call, period. All of the TV analysts I've watched have said as much. There is a school of thought to which I happen to (mostly) subscribe, that says that you have to play well enough to make bad calls by the officials irrelevant. But even if this call was different, owing to the fact that it resulted in a touchdown for the Green Bay Packers, one must pose the question to Vikings' Head Coach Brad Childress: If popping off about the officials was worth paying the NFL $35K in fines after the fact, then why did you keep that bright red, league-supplied, weighted handkerchief in your pocket when the play occurred? Wasn't the reward of having a Packers' TD nullified worth the risk of losing a challenge and a time-out? If ever there's a time to challenge a call, then it's in a closely fought contest against an arch-rival, when the result of said call will be points for the opposing team. There are likely many reasons for Brett Favre's maddening performance (3 INT, including a "pick-six") on Monday night, and NFL pundit speculation has been rife with regard to the likelihood that Favre has been increasingly distracted by the on-going, off-field "sexting" subtext. I'm far more inclined to think that the Childress/Bevell/Favre brain-trust is still having serious problems deciphering the complexities of the 3-4 defense and its many variations. While this difficulty has not always resulted in large numbers of sacks, it has resulted in Favre's having been under the sustained pressure of both collapsing pass protection, and problematic coverage reads. Brett Favre has now thrown at least three interceptions and/or been sacked at least three times, against every 3-4 defense the Minnesota Vikings have faced this year. All but one of those opposing 3-4 defenses have scored a touchdown. At this stage of the season, I do not believe that this can be dismissed as a series of unfortunate coincidences. This is not about Brett Favre being 41 years old. This is about any quarterback currently playing for the Minnesota Vikings being at both a strategic and tactical disadvantage. If someone with Brett Favre's experience is having difficulty reading the various 3-4 coverages and blitzes, then no QB operating in the current Vikings offense can really be expected to do any better. So now the argument is rekindled anew, regarding the quarterback position for the Minnesota Vikings. There is a case to be made for Tarvaris Jackson being prepped as the starting QB this coming Sunday, on the road at Foxboro Stadium, against the New England Patriots. I for one would ordinarily be vehemently opposed to such a decision, for reasons that I articulated in my very first posting, until I consider the alternative. The alternative is allowing Brett Favre to start against New England, risking a season-ending injury, with two stress fractures in his ankle. As aggressive as the Patriots' 3-4 defense tends to be, it is an open question as to whether Favre will be able to finish whatever he starts. Jackson will not go through his progressions nearly as quickly or completely as Favre could, but one would hope there are a lot of high-percentage throws that Jackson should be able to make now, that he probably could not have made last year. He should also be able to make plays with his feet, something that Favre cannot do now, even when healthy. I would much rather see Tarvaris Jackson start the game outright, after having taken the lion's share of this week's practice snaps, than see him enter a game in relief of a quarterback who is already under siege. For good or for ill, if Tarvaris Jackson is ever going to make a convincing case that he can start in the NFL at the quarterback position, then now is the time.