GREEN BAY, Wisconsin (Ticker) -- It was billed as Chris Hovan vs. Brett Favre. But Daunte Culpepper was the one that delivered the knockout punch.
Culpepper threw three touchdown passes to steal the spotlight as the Minnesota Vikings held on a for a surprising 30-25 victory over the Green Bay Packers.
The focus on the opener between NFC North Division rivals was squarely on Hovan - the Vikings' defensive tackle - and Favre - the future Hall of Fame quarterback of the Packers.
Last season, Hovan and Favre became engaged in a shouting match after each of the two meetings. Hovan did not hide his disdain for Favre and even hung Favre's jersey in his locker during training camp.
"We got screwed here last year," said Hovan referring to a 26-22 loss in December. "Everyone was upset about it. We knew we could win in here."
But Culpepper quickly became the story of the afternoon as he completed 15-of-30 passes for 198 yards. His favorite target was Randy Moss, who had nine catches for 150 yards and a score.
"I think since my rookie year, the excitement we had in the locker room is something I'll never forgot," said Moss, who had five catches for 190 yards and two touchdowns in a Monday game here in 1998. "And what happened on the field I'll never forget. It's what drives me to come here and do good."
Favre had a foregettable afternoon as he tried to rally the Packers from a 27-3 deficit in the third quarter. He completed 25-of-41 passes for 251 yards for one touchdown but was intercepted four times.
"I was upset we lost the game, but I'm not going to be a bad sportsman," Favre said. "It was as ugly as it gets but it wasn't anything Hovan did or Randy Moss or Daunte Culpepper."
Favre also lost some of his firepower in the contest. Wide receivers Donald Driver (neck strain), Robert Ferguson (ankle, knee), Karsten Bailey (hamstring) and tight end Wesley Walls (hamstring) all left the game with injuries.
Driver was taken off the field on a stretcher, but X-rays were negative.
There were no such problems for Culpepper, who directed a 10-play, 76-yard drive on the Vikings' intial possession of the contest.
Culpepper highlighted the drive with a 15-yard connection to Moss and a 17-yard run. He capped the march with an 11-yard touchdown pass to running back John Avery.
Culpepper talked of the importance of scoring on the first drive.
"It's huge. That's the thing we want to do this year, concentrate on this year," Culpepper said. "With the defense we have now, I think if we control the ball and do what we have to do on offense, we're going to win a lot more games than we lose."
Aaron Elling kicked a 22-yard field goal with 1:52 left in the first quarter, giving the Vikings a 10-0 lead.
Minnesota held a 196-2 advantage in total yards in the first quarter.
Favre led a seven-play, 41-yard drive early in the second quarter that Ryan Longwell capped with a 27-yard field goal.
But Culpepper and the Vikings immediately answered as they moved 67 yards in 10 plays. Culpepper had completions of 23, 11 and 22 yards to Moss on the march.
"We used to call that the Randy Ratio, but we kind of did away with that," Vikings coach Mike Tice said. "It's two really good players out there making plays. And certainly they both wanted to do well today.
Culpepper culminated the drive with a two-yard TD pass to D'Wayne Bates, extending the lead to 17-3 with 5:34 left in the half.
Elling extended the lead with a 46-yard field goal with four seconds left before intermission.
After the Packers failed to convert on their first possession of the third quarter, the Vikings moved 59 yards in seven plays. Culpepper capped that drive with a 15-yard TD pass to Moss, making it 27-3.
In 11 career games against the Packers, Moss has 58 catches for 1,126 yards and 10 touchdowns.
"Moss had a great game," Packers coach Mike Sherman said. "He's a great player. He got the best of us today."
The Vikings finished with 337 total yards, 21 first downs and went 8-of-14 on third down.
The Packers tried to rally as Ahman Green ran eight yards for a touchdown and Favre found tight end Bubba Franks for the conversion, pulling Green Bay within 27-11 with 90 seconds left in the third quarter.
After Elling kicked a 34-yard field goal 3:53 into the fourth quarter, Green ran one yard for a score on the Packers' next possession.
With 1:55 left in the contest, Favre found Javon Walker with a 24-yard touchdown pass, pulling the Packers within 30-25.
But the Vikings recovered the onside kick and ran out the clock.
The game drew a record crowd of 70,505 to the renovated Lambeau Field.
