Favre says he thinks his groin injury will be fine

[November 12, 2009]  EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (AP) -- The latest injury Brett Favre must fight to maintain his record durability streak is a pulled groin muscle. Back from his bye week, Favre said he believes he'll be fine.

Favre said he was hurt in practice while rolling out during a drill two weeks ago and aggravated the injury in pregame warmups at Green Bay on Nov. 1. The Vikings didn't play last week, giving their 40-year-old quarterback extra time to heal.

"It was a concern for the game. I made it through. With a week's rest I think I'll be fine," Favre said Wednesday. "But I'm not going to make it a bigger issue than it is. It's kind of a new thing for me. To play 18 some-odd years and not have anything like that that probably worried me more than anything. But I think I'll be fine."

Favre said the injury bothered him during the Packers game, but "not as bad" as he feared it might. He told coach Brad Childress, offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell and backup quarterback Tarvaris Jackson to be ready in case he couldn't finish the game.

"I didn't want to have to go into every drive or leave the huddle and say, 'I have to play a little bit cautious this way,' or 'I hope I can get this handoff out there,'" Favre said.

Favre has seemed to relish the wounded warrior persona throughout his career, and he sure didn't appear affected by the injury in Green Bay. He threw four touchdown passes in Minnesota's 38-26 victory.

"I feel pretty good, mentally and physically. Not great, but I don't know too many guys that would say that," Favre said.

Favre has been on the injury report a few times this season for other body parts, but so far he has held up relatively well after having offseason surgery to fix a partially torn biceps in his throwing arm.

With four more games, Favre will pass former Vikings defensive lineman Jim Marshall and set the NFL record for a non-kicker with 283 consecutive regular season games played.

"You have to have muscles to pull them," Favre said with a smirk. "Either that's a sign of old age or I'm developing muscles for the first time in my career."

Favre was listed as a limited participant in practice on the injury report, citing both his hip and his groin. Before the bye, Childress said the groin and hip issues were connected.

The Vikings (7-1) host Detroit (1-7) on Sunday.

Cornerback Antoine Winfield's status is unclear for the game. For the first time since hurting his right foot on Oct. 18, Winfield was in full gear at the beginning of practice while reporters were allowed to watch. He wasn't present at the end.

"Just a matter of giving him more each day," Childress said.

[Associated Press; By DAVE CAMPBELL]

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