Favre's Frisky and Jets Are 1-0

Newsday, Melville, N.Y.

MIAMI -- The football sailed so high and for so long, you weren't sure if it had "interception" written all over it or "Goodyear." And when it finally parachuted in the direction of Jets receiver Chansi Stuckey, well, if he had signaled for a fair catch, you couldn't blame him.

The desperately thrown heave from 22 yards away by Brett Favre on a broken play wasn't perfect, which defined his first game as a Jet, but it was money, and that also defined his game.

Stuckey caught the ball for a most unusual touchdown that taught Favre's new teammates the following lesson, as they continue to learn from one another: Not only is school in session, so is schoolyard.

"I'm sure Brett threw balls like that when he was a little kid," Stuckey said.

Well, he's still young and frisky, at least in spirit, mainly because Sunday represented a whole new beginning for a guy who turns 39 next month. You could sense all afternoon Favre was just having fun, which is easy to do when you're playing a Dolphins team that lost 15 of 16 last year, and when you can still throw Hail Mary passes and get lucky on the other end, and especially when you win a game watched closely by an entire football nation for no other reason except to see one player.

"I hope I can bring something to this team that I've brought to every team I've played with," Favre said, "whatever that may be."

He tossed a pair of TDs in the 20-14 win, with the one to Stuckey drawn straight from the playbook, not the one written by the Jets, but from Favre's personal edition. It came on fourth down, when the Jets normally would kick a field goal, except Mike Nugent was temporarily unavailable from a slight ding, so it was all left to Favre. While getting pressure from the Dolphins and just before getting splattered to the turf, he let it fly and prayed.

"A shot put," is how Favre described the pass.

You wanna know how history will describe it? Touchdown.

What we saw on this play is what makes Favre who he is: an improvising gambler who isn't afraid to go all-or-nothing. This mentality hasn't always served him well; over his career, Favre has thrown his share of interceptions and yours. Just ask the Giants, who picked off Favre last January in overtime in the NFC Championship Game in what was supposed to be the final pass of Favre's career.

Evidently, he hasn't changed much since he left the Packers and resumed his career with a most unexpected team.

"He has the ability to make some things happen," Jets coach Eric Mangini said.

He didn't throw a single interception or hurt his team. He made the throws that needed to be made, nothing more or less. He's still trying to remember his teammates' tendencies and probably their names, not to mention the plays.

"A couple of times (in the huddle), I just winged it," he revealed. "I just told the guys, 'Same play,' and then 'OK, ready, break.' And they were like, 'Same what?' "

He found seven different receivers, including Jerricho Cotchery on a 56-yard TD, and the biggest surprise was that even Laveranues Coles managed a catch. The chemistry between Favre and Coles remains under construction but improving, now that it appears Coles has gotten over his man-crush on his dearly departed ex-teammate Chad Pennington.

"We're all learning more about Brett every day," Cotchery said. "This was just another step in the process, but it is a process. For example, every throwing motion he has, the ball comes out differently. Sometimes it's a bullet, another time a touch pass. We're just told to keep running, so when he threw that pass to me, I was running my tail off."

You know, football's a funny game. Two months ago, the Jets were preparing to open the season with Pennington, not against him, as they did Sunday. And now, the AFC East might've taken a wicked turn with Tom Brady's knee injury, which might be season-ending and could cripple the Patriots.

It's far too premature to suggest the Jets, who host the Pats on Sunday, are suddenly looking at a season that'll make you forget last year's 4-12. But this much we can say with conviction: Favre will make something happen, and some of it will be good.

"I'm excited about the opportunity," he said. "I don't know where we go from here but it's a good start."

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