Nearly every time Brett Favre took a snap it seemed Julius Peppers was in his face. Minnesota wasn’t moving the ball and coach Brad Childress had apparently seen enough of his 40-year-old quarterback getting bruised and battered.

Favre would have nothing of it.

A third-quarter argument between Favre and the coach who worked so hard to bring him out of retirement was part of a dismal Sunday night for the Vikings, who instead of celebrating another NFC North title must worry about a stunning 26-7 loss to the Carolina Panthers and their coach-quarterback relationship.

In calling it a “heated discussion,” Favre said Childress wanted to take him out with the Vikings (11-3) clinging to a 7-6 lead hours after they clinched the division crown when Green Bay lost to Pittsburgh.

“Brad wanted to go in a different direction. And I wanted to stay in the game,” Favre said. “Yeah, it’s not 70-6, but we were up 7-6. I said I’m staying in the game. I’m playing.”

It didn’t work out well, with the Panthers outscoring Minnesota 20-0 in the fourth quarter. Favre threw for only 224 yards with no touchdowns, one interception and was sacked four times.