by by Bob Sansevere , St. Paul Pioneer Press

There's a bit of excitement in the vicinity of Lambeau Field, where the hometown Packers will face the Vikings . Has something to do with Brett Favre returning to a place where he spent 16 record-setting seasons. It also has something to do with this being Green Bay, where there's not much else to do but obsess about the Packers.

This was a typical comment heard at Green Bay bars this week: "Favre (yada yada yada). Hey, give me another beer. Favre (yada yada yada)."

The smart money is on Favre being booed lustily when he takes the field. And when he takes a snap. And when he completes a pass or takes a breath.

Cheers? There will be some of those from fans still appreciative of the Super Bowl he won and the victories he provided while wearing the ol' green and gold.

There will be far more cheers when he throws an incompletion or is sacked.

"When it's third down, we want to make as much chaos and noise as possible. That just helps us out tremendously, when our fans are loud and raucous and we're giving them something to cheer about," said Packers linebacker Aaron Kampman. "In terms of how the fans respond or how they should respond (to Favre), I have no idea."

Kampman took the company line: Don't say anything bad about Favre to enflame fans even more than they already are.

Wide receiver Greg Jennings went with a similar approach.

"The fans and the media are doing the drama," Jennings said. "Any time the media can build something up bigger than what it really is, the thing is going to draw more attention. Obviously, we know why it's been blown up. We go about it as another game. That's the way the players are going to approach it. The fans can approach it one way, the media can approach it another way, but we have to approach it as a game.

"When it comes right down to it, fans are going to be rooting and cheering for us. We have the G on our helmet. We have the right color on. And we have the best fans. So I'm not worried about that (Favre's return) at all."

The players are taking their cue from head coach Mike McCarthy, whose news conferences should be put on DVD and sold on pharmacy shelves next to Sominex. Brad Childress is almost a verbal dynamo compared to this guy -- almost.

Here, read for yourself:

"I think once the ball is kicked off, the Green Bay Packer fans will be the great fans that they always are," McCarthy said. "Our fans have a lot of class. I think they'll be appropriate. I was here in '99. I remember when Mike Holmgren came back. I think our fans are first-class. I think they'll handle it appropriately."

Former Packers aren't as careful, or bland, with their words. Check out what former safety LeRoy Butler told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "If you're going to stand up wearing Packer clothing or a Packer uniform and cheer when Brett Favre comes out, you should bring a bag and put it over your head."

Butler also is the one who responded to Favre's claim that "physically, and from a talent level, this is the best team I've ever been on," by saying such a comment is "just preposterous."

Also preposterous is anyone thinking Packers fans will keep their eyes and larynxes focused on Favre the entire game.

Aside from all the sideshow elements, the outcome of this game could have an enormous say about which team wins the NFC North. If the Vikings win, they will go to 7-1 and pretty much have a vise grip on first place because they will have the tiebreaker edge over the Packers, who will be no worse than a tie for second place with a 4-3 record. As for the other teams in the NFC North, the Chicago Bears (3-3 now) are nothing special and won't be a factor in the division race and the Detroit Lions, well, they stink worse than my 5-month-old daughter's diapers.

If the Packers win today, it's tight at the top with the Packers at 5-2 and the Vikings at 6-2 heading into their bye week. (The Packers have played one fewer game because they had their bye week after losing 30-23 to the Vikings on Oct. 5.)

"We lost a game up there. There wasn't anything spectacular they did on offense or defense. We felt like we let ourselves down," Jennings said. "You want to get the win because you're right there at the top of the division. They have Brett on their team now. Everybody is hyping that up. But we have Aaron Rodgers. We're good to go."

Bob Sansevere can be reached at bsansevere@pioneerpress.com

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