Hit hard early and often by New York’s physical defense, Favre nearly led the Vikings back on a night he set a passing milestone, but Dwight Lowery returned an interception 26 yards for the game-deciding touchdown.
In a game that was delayed 45 minutes at the start by lightning, Nick Folk kicked five field goals for the Jets (4-1).
Favre finished 14 for 34 for 264 yards for the Vikings, hours after he apologized to teammates for the distraction caused by an NFL investigation into allegations that he sent racy messages and lewd photos to a Jets game hostess in 2008.
He became the first NFL player to throw 500 touchdown passes and for 70,000 yards, but two early fumbles against his former team helped put the Vikings in a 12-0 hole.
He connected with new teammate Randy Moss from 37 yards out late in the third quarter to make it 12-7. Favre zipped down the field and jumped into Moss’ arms in the end zone to celebrate the score.
Less than 5 minutes later, Favre hit Percy Harvin for a 34-yard touchdown that made it 15-13 with 12:47 left. But Favre’s tying 2-point conversion attempt was intercepted by Antonio Cromartie in the end zone.
Shonn Greene’s 23-yard touchdown run with 4:30 left gave the Jets a 22-13 lead that appeared to seal the victory, but Favre still had plenty of time to try for a comeback victory.
He again connected with Harvin with 3:09 left as the Viking cut the deficit to 22-20, and getting the ball back with 1:43 remaining, the stage appeared set for Favre to lead his team on a winning drive, but his errant pass was cut out by Lowery.
The game marked the Vikings debut for Moss, who finished with four catches for 81 yards, including the touchdown, while being defended mostly by Cromartie despite the return of Darrelle Revis from a hamstring injury.
Adrian Peterson had 88 yards on 18 carries for Minnesota.
New York’s offense struggled for the first time since Week 1, failing to get much going — other than field goals — until late.
Mark Sanchez was 21 of 44 for 191 yards, and still hasn’t thrown an interception this season, although he came close a few times. Santonio Holmes played his first game with the Jets after being suspended the first four for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. He finished with three catches for 41 yards.
LaDainian Tomlinson had another solid game for the Jets with 94 yards rushing on 20 carries.
Meantime, Brett Favre stepped up to the podium after a discouraging loss to the New York Jets and spent about 20 minutes evading questions the same way he tried to avoid tacklers.
The Minnesota Vikings quarterback was asked several times after Monday night’s 29-20 loss to the New York Jets to discuss the NFL’s investigation into allegations that he sent racy messages and lewd photos to a Jets game hostess in 2008.
Each time, the three-time MVP did not address the topic. He said he was disappointed his team lost the game and his only focus had been on trying to beat the Jets.
Asked if the allegations against him are true or false, a tight-lipped Favre said: “If you want to talk about what happened in the football game tonight, I’d love to.”
Earlier Monday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league is looking to “find out all the facts” before determining “what the next step is from there, if any.”
Goodell spoke in Chicago, where he is attending league meetings. There was no indication from the NFL when the investigation would be complete or when the league would talk to the quarterback.
The NFL is trying to determine if Favre violated its personal conduct policy. Should the league find he did, Favre could be fined or suspended.
“The first thing you want to do is find out the facts, and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Goodell said. “We’re trying to find out all the facts around it and then once we determine those facts, then we’ll determine what the next step is from there, if any.”
After a long stretch with Green Bay, where he won a Super Bowl, Favre played for New York in 2008 and then signed with the Vikings last year.
Last week, the website Deadspin posted a story which included several voicemails allegedly sent by Favre to Jenn Sterger, who worked for the Jets while Favre was with the team. The voicemails include a man asking to meet with Sterger, who now is a TV personality for the Versus network. The website posted a video that contained the voicemails and several graphic photos — said to be of Favre — that were allegedly sent to Sterger’s cell phone.
Sterger’s manager, Phil Reese, has declined to say if his client is cooperating with the NFL or has retained a lawyer, but issued a statement Monday saying that “we’re looking at all our options right now and our only concern is what’s in Jenn’s best interest.”
