If the Tennessee Titans win a football game but no one watches it on television, does it still count?

Just kidding. Sunday's 30-13 victory over Jacksonville was once again proof that both quarterback Vince Young and his teammates have the potential to succeed in the NFL, even if it took them seven games to notch their first victory.

Trouble was, most of the country not actually inside league stadiums was probably glued to Brett Favre's return to Green Bay as a Minnesota Viking.

And could you blame them? This would have been at least momentarily fascinating if Favre was now playing more like his 40 graying years rather than some pigskin Peter Pan, forever young.

After all, you spend 16 years of your career in the NFL's most collegial city, complete with fan ownership, and your return as the archenemy is worth a nationwide glimpse.

But the fact that Favre came back as the emotional leader of a one-loss team gunning for a Super Bowl, a team that Cheeseheads have stamped into their DNA to loathe (along with the Chicago Bears) from the day they're born, a team that earlier slapped the Pack on Monday Night Football, well, who could voluntarily miss The Prodigal Returns?

"I saw a mixture of cheers and a couple of fingers," Favre would say later of his first trip to Lambeau Field as a visitor. "Those people are who make the Packers so special, and that will never change."

But his uniform has changed, from Green Bay green and gold to Minnesota purple. So when he tossed four touchdowns for the 21st time in his career -- tying Dan Marino's NFL record in that category -- those special fans reacted the only way most fans can: they booed.

"It was probably worse every time I took the field," said Favre at the close of the 38-26 Vikings victory. "But I considered it a good thing. Better than saying nothing."

The best thing to be said about all of this is that the NFL's all-time leader in both touchdowns and interceptions is proving to the world that he's still one of the top three or four quarterbacks in the game when he's healthy, which he wasn't a year ago during his single autumn as a New York Jet.

Peyton Manning can still obviously do what Favre does. So, too, Tom Brady. And at times Kurt Warner. And New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees may be having a better single season than any of them. For proof, just turn in tonight's MNF game between the Saints and the visiting Atlanta Falcons.

But only Favre is 40 and returning from off-season arm surgery. Only Favre is doing all this -- 16 TDs and nearly 2,000 passing yards -- with a team he barely practiced with prior to mid-August. Only Favre could develop undeniable chemistry in such a short time with a group of receivers who could just as easily call him Dad as teammate.

As Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman said during Sunday's game, "The football part doesn't surprise me that much. He's still a great player. But bonding with these new teammates so quickly really has been impressive."

So how long can this last? The Vikings are off this week then host three straight against the Lions, Seahawks and Bears. A Dec. 20 road game at Carolina could be tough, as could a trip to Chicago the following week. But it's almost impossible to see the Vikes entering the playoffs with anything worse than a 12-4 record and perhaps as strong as 15-1.

Too bad that Green Bay general manager Ted Thompson decided the team needed to move on after 16 years of Brett Ball when Favre wanted to un-retire in the summer of 2008 and remain a Packer.

Then again, if he'd stayed in Green Bay at least a few of us in the Tennessee Valley could have spent Sunday evaluating the new, improved Vince Young rather than enjoying the oldie, goldie Favre.

"My goal is to lead the Vikings to the Super Bowl," he said as he wrapped up Sunday's postgame.

Even in Green Bay, expect the cheers to far outnumber the fingers if Favre pulls it off.