Jets' Favre says arm feels 'fatigued'

[August 14, 2008]  HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) -- Brett Favre took it easy on his rocket right arm after firing a few duds earlier in the day.

"No pain, but I'm 38 years old," the Jets quarterback said Wednesday. "It's going to be fatigued a little bit."

Favre took noticeably fewer snaps in the evening practice after earlier saying he would talk to coach Eric Mangini about limiting his throws.

"My arm's kind of dragging a little bit today," Favre said after the team's morning session. "It's not really sore, but just fatigued. To be honest with you, I'm surprised that, I don't want to say I feel good, that I've been able to make it through every practice so far."

Favre misfired on a handful of throws in the morning practice, short-hopping some tosses, throwing behind -- or over -- his receivers on others.

"I felt 38 today," Favre said. "I'm not going to lie to you."

Favre was acquired from the Green Bay Packers last Wednesday night, and has been practicing with the Jets since Saturday. He's set to start Saturday's preseason game against the Washington Redskins.

"My arm, for the most part, has felt great," Favre said. "Legs, a little bit fatigued. You've got to figure I'm a little bit behind some of these guys."

Favre opened 11-on-11 drills in the late practice, his sixth since joining the Jets a week ago, by zipping his first throw into Chansi Stuckey's hands for a touchdown, his arm showing little sign of being tired.

While Brett Ratliff and Kellen Clemens took some of the snaps he normally would take, Favre watched intently from the sideline and occasionally chatted with offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and quarterbacks coach Brian Daboll.

Favre came up short working the 2-minute offense near the end of practice, throwing incomplete on fourth-and-3 to Stuckey on a pass that was defended well by Drew Coleman.

He ended the morning session on a good note, hitting Brad Smith on a fourth-down play for 53 yards -- about 45 in the air -- down the right sideline for a touchdown.

"He still has it," tight end Bubba Franks said. "I think you can ask the receivers, he still has it."

Favre retired in March, but then decided he still wanted to play. After a messy divorce with Green Bay, the Packers traded him to New York, where he's going through his 18th training camp.

"I wondered this morning when I got up, 'What in the heck am I doing?'" Favre said. "The answer to that question is I love to play. I hate to study. At times, I hate to practice, but I love to play. I know I need to study and I know I need to practice and I know how important it is. That doesn't mean I have to like it. The question I have to ask myself is, am I willing to do that? And the answer is yes."

Some have questioned Favre's desire to play in New York after he was linked mostly to Minnesota and Tampa Bay before the Jets made a late push for the three-time MVP.

"People can say what they want," said Favre, who has played in a record 253 straight regular-season games. "Yeah, there were discussions about me going elsewhere before I came here and all that. I am happy to be here. I really am. It's a lot different from what I'm used to. Did I ever think it would end up this way? Umm, no. But it's not over yet and I'm excited."

He'll get his first chance to lead the Jets on Saturday against the Redskins, though Favre isn't sure how long he'll play.

"I did tell Eric on the phone the day before I came up, I said, 'Hey, I want to play as soon as possible,'" Favre said. "I would've played three plays the other night (at Cleveland), but that would've been ugly. I don't know. I think we'll just play it by ear."

Favre said the toughest parts of the adjustment are picking up the terminology used in a new offensive system and learning the tendencies of his new receivers. He watched game films from last season to get better acquainted with the types of routes receivers such as Laveranues Coles, Jerricho Cotchery and Chris Baker run.

"We missed on a couple big plays today," Favre said. "You can't afford to do that during the season, so I hope that we're getting that out of our system now. Those were my fault. I overthrew one, underthrew another one. I think that's where, a week from now, we'll be much better."

Coles hasn't spoken to reporters since Favre was acquired and his good friend, Chad Pennington, was released to make room under the salary cap. Coles and Favre were seen on the field before the morning practice having what appeared to be a friendly conversation.

"Those two guys had a great rapport together," Favre said. "I said, 'Look, I'm not trying to replace him. I'm here to help you guys win and I hope you respect me for that.'"

[Associated Press; By DENNIS WASZAK Jr.]

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