I don't know that there was a definite turning point -- I think rather we lost bits and pieces as the season went along, and before.
- The whole Favre thing. Can't discount it, as much as I'd like to. If nothing else, the circus probably stole some focus and time from preparing for the season.
- Grant's holdout and subsequent injury. Prevented him from coming in at the level at which he'd played last year, which hurt the running game and in turn put even more pressure on our 1st year starting QB to perform at an unrealistic level.
- Early-season injuries on the O-line, particularly Wells @ center. He might not be the best center in the league, but we had some continuity going which was lost with that injury. Don't think continuity on the O-line matters? Look @ the Giants' last two games.
- Early season injuries to Bigby, KGB and Jenkins -- not good for run D or pass D. Run D has never recovered.
- The Titans loss was damn painful, and sadly a precursor to what was to come.
- Losing Barnett in the Vikings game. One more injury we weren't prepared to absorb.
There's more, and lots of it. We've had all sorts of things go wrong this season that did not go wrong last season (Brett alluded to this possibility in his retirement speech, if you'll recall -- he knew they'd set the table for a possible letdown this year). Just not a good year, but we've got a core of players that, when they're healthy and augmented by just a few more playmakers, should be able to rebound in a big way next year.