Deanna Favre has defended her husband in the wake of reports that he discussed Packers' game planning with the Lions earlier this season. She wrote in the family blog that: "this latest round of media scrutiny has been harder, more disheartening and seemingly unending." "Brett does not, in any way, hold a vendetta against his former team," Deanna continued.

ESPN recently sent out an internal memo saying that the rumor of Brett Favre disclosing inside information to the Lions about the Packers earlier this season shouldn't be reported on any of its networks. The memo, secured by Pro Football Talk, said the following: "Yesterday, FoxSports reported that Brett Favre spent 60 to 90 minutes before the Week Two game between the Lions and the Packers educating the Detroit coaching staff regarding the Packers' offensive strategies. WE HAVE BEEN TOLD BY RELIABLE SOURCES THIS REPORT IS NOT TRUE. We did NOT report it yesterday. Today, the NFL responded to the report, saying even if Favre did this he did not break any league rules. We are NOT reporting it today, because that would mean airing the erroneous report. DO NOT REPORT IT." The decision is a strange one because Fox's Jay Glazer, who reported the story, is one of the most respected and connected reporters around the league.

Packers' cornerback Charles Woodson didn't hold back when commenting on reports that Brett Favre tipped the Lions off about Green Bay's offense before a Week 2 battle. "I don't respect that. If they call him and he gives them information, that's one thing. But to seek a team out and to feel like you're trying to sabotage this team, I don't respect that," Woodson said. "I know he's been the greatest player around here for a long time, but there's no honor in that."

Fox's Jay Glazer claims that Brett Favre called the Lions prior to the team's Week 2 matchup with the Packers and gave them inside information on his former employers' offense, but NBC's Peter King says that the quarterback did nothing of the sort. "Brett Favre called the Detroit Lions, starting off with Matt Millen and then the coaching staff, and gave them a 90-minute dissertation on every single thing that the Green Bay Packers do on offense," Glazer said on Fox's pregame show on Sunday. King later countered, saying: "Favre text-messaged me before he went out to play the Oakland Raiders and said that was 'total BS.' "He vehemently denied the story. I also spoke to the Lions COO and he said, 'Our coaches are perplexed. There was no coaching of our coaching staff by Brett Favre.' " It should be pointed out that Green Bay dismantled Detroit, 48-25, in Week Two.

The Dolphins have successfully run the 'Wildcat' formation with Ronnie Brown this season, but the Jets actually ran it a year ago. In separate games, running back Leon Washington scored on an 18-yard run and completed a 36-yard pass - both on direct snaps in shotgun formation. When that was mentioned to him this week, Washington smiled. "Thank you, I appreciate that," he said. The Raiders have used it three times with Darren McFadden, and now that the rookie running back has recovered from a turf-toe injury that hampered him for a month, it could be featured in their game plan. "I love doing it," McFadden said on a conference call, hinting it could be part of the Raiders' package this week. "Growing up, I played quarterback a lot, so being able to go back and take a direct snap under center just makes you feel at home again."

Jets' safety Eric Smith believes that the NFL has used him as the poster child for a crackdown on helmet-to-helmet hits. "If you compare it to the other fines (to players around the league) and extent and amount of the other fines, I definitely feel that I have been made an example," Smith said Thursday. "It was a first offense, and there have been a couple of second offenses that have not been as severe (penalties) as mine." Smith, who makes $445,000 a year, was fined $50,000 and was forced to sit out the game against the Bengals last week. He attempted to appeal the suspension, but wasn't able to reverse the league's decision. "During the appeal, they told me intent wasn't looked at," Smith said. "I tried to say my intentions weren't to hit him like that and they told me intent wasn't looked at. If intent isn't involved, then why isn't every fine the same?"

Brett Favre has enjoyed playing for the Jets,but hasn't begun to consider whether or not he will play in 2009. "We'll take it week to week," said Favre. "At the end of the season, I'll take a look at ... I'll assess how I played this year and talk with the Jets and we'll see from there. I think it's way premature to even think about next season." Favre is signed with New York through 2010.

Eric Mangini's wife Julie gave birth to their third son on Friday and named him Zack Brett Mangini. The middle name Brett is after new Jets' quarterback Brett Favre. Mangini committed to using the middle name Brett when he and the Jets were trying to get Favre to come to New York in the summer. Their first son Jake Harrison, who's 4 1/2, is named after New England safety Rodney Harrison. Their 2 1/2-year-old son Luke William is named in honor of Patriots' Coach Bill Belichick. "Well, the history behind that," Mangini explained, "is all my kids have middle names that are related to people that have been important to me in my football career."

Brett Favre is believed to have put a dead animal in the locker of teammate Eric Barton as a prank. Some teammates believe it was a wild turkey that was inside a bag that was filled with blood and guts. ?It definitely had the wow factor,? said left guard Alan Faneca, whose locker is next to Barton?s. ?I?ve never had a dead animal brought into the locker room, so yeah, it?s up there.? Faneca assumed that Favre was the perpetrator. Barton refused to name a suspect, but did say that ?I hope that the animal rights activists find out about it, whoever did it, that cruel person.?

Jets' safety Eric Smith has appealed his one-game suspension and $50,000 fine for his helmet-to-helmet hit on Arizona receiver Anquan Boldin in Week Four. "Nothing has been finalized with that yet," Coach Eric Mangini said. "It still has to go through the appeal process." Smith, a starter in his third season with the Jets, has insisted there was no malicious intent on his part.