There are certain athletes who come around once in a lifetime, and whether or not you like them, you have to appreciate what they bring to the table. Had Brett Favre stuck with his convictions two years ago and walked away, no one would have said boo -- after all, he pretty much had all the records. But now, Favre is not only playing fantastic at age 40, he's having the most efficient season of his career by far.

Here's a comparison between his best statistical season prior to 2009 -- his 1995 season when he won the MVP -- and this year:

1995:  38 touchdowns, 13 interceptions, 4413 yards, 63.0 completion %,   99.5 QB Rating

2009:  26 touchdowns,   5 interceptions, 3149 yards, 69.0 completion %, 108.5 QB Rating

Are the touchdowns and yardage as impressive as they were in 1995? No. But in everything else, Favre is playing better than he ever has before. In all the years he started all 16 games, the least INT's he ever threw was 13, and he led the league with 22 picks last season. His QB Rating and completion percentage are off the chart as well -- for the first time, you can actually categorize Favre as a game quarterback and not just a gunslinger.

However, we've seen this story before. Earlier in his career, Favre was recognized as the greatest cold-weather quarterback of all time, but since the turn of the century, his tolerance to freezing temperatures has decreased substantially. We all remember how badly he played in the 2007 NFC Championship Game, when he coughed up the game-losing interception, and we all know how badly he played in the final five games of the 2008 season. Granted, Favre was injured in '08 and in this go-around with the Vikings, his team is in no danger of missing the postseason. Still, it's not unreasonable to question if Favre's efficiency will plummet over the course of December and January.

If he has any prayer of winning the MVP, Favre has to maintain a statistical edge over Peyton Manning and Drew Brees, which at the moment he doesn't have. Unfortunately for Brett, Brees and Manning are both on 12-0 teams and will likely monopolize the MVP voting should both or either of them go undefeated. Even if they both lose a game before the end of the year, there's no assuring that the award would go to Favre anyway; thanks to his horrible performance against the Cardinals on Sunday, Drew Brees leads Brett Favre in every statistical category besides interceptions.

In short, Favre is having a phenomenal year, and that won't change even if he has a slow December. But if he's going to win the MVP, he not only has to keep pace with Manning and Brees, he has to better than them. And knowing Favre's track record of late in December, that could be an obstacle he's incapable of overcoming.