Last night Chicago Bears rookie Defensive End Corey Wootton ended Brett Favre’s night by thunderously slamming the Minnesota Vikings 41-year-old quarterback to the ground during the second quarter.
Favre’s head injury and concussion like symptoms forced him out of the game and may have ended his NFL career too. To quote Comedy Central’s Tosh.0, “and for that (Mr. Wootton) we thank you.”
So did the first year lineman out of Northwestern University just become a potential answer to an inevitable future trivia question?
“I knew it was the last home game,” Favre said after the Bears trounced the Vikings, 40-14, to clinch the NFC North title at the Siberian setting of TCF Bank Stadium.
By Paul M. Banks
After the sack on the exceedingly hard frozen turf, Favre laid motionless for a few seconds before slowly getting up and walking off. He finished 5-7 passing for 63 yards. Wootton sat out the rest of the game as well.
Since 2008, we’ve learned that anything Favre says about his future is utterly worthless. He’s become to indecisiveness what ESPN is to slobering coverage of him. You can’t put even a shred of value into anything he publicly says anymore, as he wasn’t even supposed to play in this game.
Saturday, He was declared out on the NFL official injury report, yet somehow was able to suit up. I don’t know how the protocol works, but isn’t this illegal? Isn’t your injury report set on the weekend? I don’t come close to understanding how this is fair to Vegas or opposing NFL teams. And the fact that’s Favre makes me think the league bended the rules for him.
Favre has publicly stated on several occasions that this year that this will be his last, and only two games remain, at Philly and a visit to the Detroit Lions. Who knows if we’ll go through the same song and dance next summer, but with the whole Jenn Sterger sexting mess and the Vikings ship sinking by October in 2010, it would take a whole lot of money for Favre to overcome all his aches and pains to come back.
Wootton may indeed be the one who finally killed off Favre’s career. He’s become the NFL’s answer of RAF Captain Roy Brown. Arthur “Roy” Brown was a Canadian air combat captain who is credited with shooting down Baron Manfred Von Richtofen, the infamous “Red Baron.” Brown is/was obscure, but he’s the man who ended the career of the greatest combat pilot of all time, as the Red Baron is credited with 80 kills, and it only takes 5 to be considered an “Ace.”
That’s dominance in the field of human conflict at it’s highest point. And Favre is/was similar with his NFL passing records. Now it’s just up to Wootton, who’s career has only just begun, to make a name for himself. Maybe this is the former Northwestern Wildcats star’s springboard to becoming the next Bruce Smith?
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net , a Midwest webzine. He’s also a regular contributor to the Tribune’s Chicago Now network, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker Network, and Fox Sports.com
You can follow him on Twitter @thesportsbank
He also does a regular guest spot each week for Chicagoland Sports Radio.com