Prime-time

Perhaps the retirement of Brett won’t have an impact on the Packers getting national games this year following the great season last year.  The first game of the Rodger’s era is in prime-time.

The post-Brett Favre era will begin against the division rival that gave Favre the most problems.

Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers will open the 2008 season by hosting the Minnesota Vikings in a Monday night game at 6 p.m. Sept. 8, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced this afternoon. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.

The teams last met in Week 1 on Sept. 7, 2003, when the Vikings spoiled the opening of the renovated Lambeau Field by beating the Packers 30-25.

Favre was 17-14 against the Vikings in his career, compared to 22-10 against Chicago and 23-9 against Detroit, but the Packers swept the season series against Minnesota the past two years.

The Packers said today that no decision has been made on whether to retire Brett Favre’s No. 4 jersey on opening night. Favre and the Packers will pick a date for the ceremony after the full schedule is announced, which is expected to be next week.

The rest of the kickoff weekend prime-time schedule: Washington at New York Giants, Thursday, Sept. 4, 6 p.m.; Chicago at Indianapolis, Sunday, Sept. 7, 7:15 p.m.; Denver at Oakland, Monday, Sept. 8, 9:15 p.m.

The league’s entire 2008 schedule likely will be announced next week.

So it will be next week at the earliest before we find out which game will be the most sought after.