# I have two football questions.
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [October 12, 2004, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772 "2004-10-12T03:53:54Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/1 "2004-10-12T03:53:54Z")
1. What position is the defensive equivalent to quarterback.
2. Why do they pronounce Brett **Favre** as Farve?
Hey, at least I’m taking an interest. 🙂
Peace,
mangeorge
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### Author:  [@Reeder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeder)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/2 "2004-10-12T04:02:44Z")
Defensive quarterback…usually the middle linebacker. No set rule for that though.
As to the Favre pronunciation…
[http://www.speedreading.com/phpBB2/ftopic2855-15.html](http://www.speedreading.com/phpBB2/ftopic2855-15.html)
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### Author:  [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/3 "2004-10-12T05:32:29Z")
1. I see.
Nobody actually knows.
Maybe it’s one of those immigration things, where an agent puts down what he thinks he hears?
2. Would that be the player who seems to be directing the others?
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### Author:  [@furt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furt)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/4 "2004-10-12T05:39:08Z")
1. There isn’t one. Signals are called by the Middle Linebacker or occasionally a safety, but generally speaking defensive plays aren’t as complicated as offensive ones, and there’s less changing at the line.
2. He’s from Mississippi.
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### Author:  [@Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightwatch_Trailer)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/5 "2004-10-12T05:43:51Z")
Interestingly, there are also some actual Fa **rv** es down south as well. One went to my high school. I pronounce the football player’s name “Fav-ray” just…because.
And he’s not just from Mississippi - he’s from the Kiln (pronounced “kill,” and always “the kiln,” not just “kiln”), yo! Things are diff’rent there.
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### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/6 "2004-10-12T13:36:25Z")
> [@mangeorge](#):
>
> 1. Why do they pronounce Brett **Favre** as Farve?
If by “they,” you mean the media, they pronounce it that way because that’s how Favre wants to have it pronounced. Spelling and pronunciation of a person’s name is always whatever that person prefers.
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### Author:  [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/7 "2004-10-12T13:56:25Z")
I knew some Favre’s when I was a kid. They pronounced it “Favor”.
:: shrug ::
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### Author:  [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2004, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-two-football-questions/268772/8 "2004-10-12T14:23:46Z")
There are team leaders or captains. The defensive captain is often a veteran star player of any position. Defenses also change a lot situationally. Coaches may rotate all sorts of several “packages” in depending on the situation at hand.