How else to explain why NBC exercised its right to bump the Patriots and Dolphins from prime time a week from Sunday in Miami and instead air the Vikings and Cardinals from Arizona?

Pats-Dolphins figures to be a bigger game. But the execs at NBC apparently think Favre is a bigger name, who'll attract larger ratings.

Miami is a 3-point favorite to win at Buffalo this Sunday. The Patriots are 3-point underdogs Monday Night in New Orleans. If the Dolphins win, and New England loses, then their game Dec. 6 will be for first place in the AFC East.

If the Dolphins beat the Bills and Pats, they'd not only be 7-5 overall, but they'd also be 5-1 within the division. A pair of Patriots losses, to the Saints and Dolphins, would leave them 7-5 overall and 3-2 in the division. In which case, because the Pats couldn't equal Miami's division record, they'd have to finish ahead of the Dolphins overall in order to unseat them as division champs.

The 9-1 Vikings have a 3-game lead in the NFC North and host the 4-6 Bears on Sunday. The 7-3 Cardinals also have a 3-game lead in their division, the NFC West. They play Sunday at Tennessee, which has won four in a row since being humiliated, 59-0, at New England last month.

Favre's return from retirement to spark the Vikes has been one of the major stories in the NFL this season.

Apparently, NBC thinks it's more compelling than Pats-Dolphins, which now will be played at 1 p.m. on Dec. 6, rather than at 8:20 p.m.