Posted by ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert

CHICAGO -- Oh boy. It’s on.

Yes, Favre-Packers I is finally upon us. In just a few hours -- OK, 12 -- Minnesota and Green Bay will kick off to settle the first half of this 2009 grudgefest. From an NFC North perspective, the game will decide whether we finish the first quarter of the season with one team holding sole possession of first place or three teams with a 3-1 record. (Wouldn’t that be something?)

I’m departing soon for the second leg of our Week 4 FourFecta. My plan is to offer some second-day thoughts on both Chicago and Detroit later Monday and then be in Minneapolis by mid-afternoon. I’m sure I won’t be the only one chilling downtown by that time.

For now, let’s take our morning spin around the division.

• Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune: “This isn't going to actually happen, is it? This must be one of those popular myths, like the Loch Ness Monster and tax reform. This must be one of those events we prepare for because of misguided mass hysteria, like Y2K.”
• Bob Sansevere of the St. Paul Pioneer Press: “Let's be honest here: Not since Benedict Arnold switched sides has there been more passion and raw emotion about going from one team to another. [Brett] Favre has polarized the Upper Midwest. Fans who once hated him now proudly wear his No. 4 purple jersey. And fans who once adored him now abhor him.”
• Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel sees Monday as a seminal night for Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers: “When the Packers meet the Minnesota Vikings Monday night at the Metrodome, it won't be Brett Favre vs. Aaron Rodgers. But this, Rodgers' 20th start, stands to be the most important moment in his career, and plenty of people will be watching to see whether he can do what Favre has done so many times: win when it matters.”
• Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette looks at the disparate ways the Vikings and Packers have built their rosters.
• The Bears gave defensive line coach Rod Marinelli a game ball after Sunday’s 48-24 victory over Detroit. David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune: “When Lovie Smith called Marinelli the team's biggest offseason acquisition in January, the reaction was a scoff. Nobody is rolling their eyes now. In 2008, the Bears defensive ends and tackles combined for 22.5 sacks. They already have 10 in four games under Marinelli. That's no coincidence.”
• Bears quarterback Jay Cutler conjured images of John Elway with his 5-yard helicopter route to the end zone Sunday. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Sun-Times looks at Cutler’s day.
• John Niyo of the Detroit News: “In the first quarter, Matthew Stafford was high-stepping off the field in celebration. In the third quarter, he was backpedaling on the field under siege. In the fourth, he was limping on the sideline, with his parka on and an ice pack on his injured right knee. As progressions go, that's not exactly a positive sign for the Lions and their rookie quarterback.”
• Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press: “Hopefully, it proves nothing more than a tweak. But it’s important that the Lions not take any unnecessary chances with The Franchise. The possibility that Stafford could miss even one week would certainly dishearten all connected with the team, because every game, every snap becomes a learning experience. But this is when the head coach must turn into hard-boiled parent, saying, ‘No!’ despite his young quarterback’s claims to the contrary that he’s OK.”