Favre Named Nfl Mvp Packers Qb A Runaway Choice Off Scintillating 11-Win Season
Brett Favre epitomizes the essence of an MVP: Teammates, opponents, fans and media all seem to agree he deserves the honor.
And the Green Bay quarterback has it, a runaway winner of the 1995 NFL Most Valuable Player award in balloting conducted by The Associated Press and announced Monday.
Favre, who set an NFC record with 38 touchdowns passes and threw for 4,413 yards, guided the Packers to an 11-5 record and their first NFC Central title in 23 years. It was their first 11-victory season since 1966. They also beat the Atlanta Falcons 37-20 in the opening round of the playoffs.
Favre earned 69 votes from a nationwide panel of 88 sports writers and broadcasters. San Francisco’s star receiver, Jerry Rice, was next with 10 votes. Dallas running back Emmitt Smith, the winner in 1993, got seven votes, and Indianapolis quarterback Jim Harbaugh received two.
Last year’s winner, 49ers quarterback Steve Young, did not get a vote.
“It means everything,” said Favre of his fifth - and by far most successful - regular season in the NFL. “It’s like winning the Super Bowl, except it’s an individual honor. It’s the National Football League, which means it’s the best player in the whole world. In this game. And that’s awesome.
“Think about all the great players you play with and play against. It’s overwhelming. It’s hard to even explain how much that means to win and say, ‘God, MVP of the league.”’
Favre has drawn praise throughout the league this season for his leadership as well as his skills. He said that role dates back to before the 1994 season, when All-Pro receiver Sterling Sharpe was involved in a contract dispute with Packers management. Favre defended the team.
“I think probably when Sterling held out and I stood up and said my piece, I think everyone said, ‘Hey, this is his guy, this is his favorite receiver, his favorite target,”’ Favre said. “And I wasn’t bashing him. I was just speaking my mind, and that earned a lot of respect.”