DETROIT (AP) — Brett Favre stood on the sidelines for the start of a game for the first time since 1992, rubbing his salt-and-pepper beard in frustration because his body couldn’t take another pounding.

His replacement struggled early and often, thanks to the New York Giants.

Brandon Jacobs ran for a go-ahead touchdown midway through the second quarter, Eli Manning threw a lead-padding TD just before halftime and Ahmad Bradshaw added a 48-yard run to help the Giants beat Minnesota 21-3 Monday night.

Favre’s NFL-record streak of 297 straight starts ended because of his banged-up right shoulder and numb hand in a game moved from Minneapolis because the Metrodome roof collapsed under heavy snow early Sunday.

The Giants sacked Favre replacement Tarvaris Jackson four times, knocking him out of the game late in the third period and again in the final seconds.

New York (9-4) moved back into a first-place tie with Philadelphia in the NFC East. Minnesota, which went to the NFC title game last January, (5-8) was eliminated from the playoff race.

The game was switched from Sunday afternoon when the Giants couldn’t get to Minneapolis because of the severe weather, then was moved to the Detroit Lions’ indoor stadium with a steel roof. The Vikings were technically the home team at Ford Field — which was adorned with their logo at midfield and “VIKINGS” in the end zones — but they didn’t have much of an edge.

“The whole thing is bizarre,” Vikings radio analyst Pete Bercich said.

Nothing, though, was more odd than seeing Favre watch a game.

He stood on the sideline, trying to tutor Jackson at times, and sporting a purple knit hat, short-sleeved black shirt with a long-sleeved white shirt underneath, and black warmup pants.

The game drew an announced crowd of 45,910 — there seemed to be at least 10,000 more people in the 65,000-seat stadium late in the first half — and some fans made the trek to see Favre.

Even though most got in for free, they left disappointed, especially if they were rooting for the Vikings.

New York has won three straight and eight of 10 games, improving its chances for a wild card if it doesn’t finish ahead of the Eagles, who it hosts Sunday.

Minnesota entered the game with a two-game winning streak and flickering hopes of salvaging what has been a miserable season.

Jackson got off to a good start, completing his first two passes for 8 yards each, but struggled for much of the game. He wasted an opportunity to show his coaches and teammates he can be counted on to fill in for Favre for a game and perhaps in the future.

He completed just 12 of 22 passes, threw an interception directly to linebacker Keith Bulluck, and fumbled a shotgun snap he was able to recover. Another shotgun snap got away and he recovered it near the goal line, seemingly getting a break from the officials on what appeared to be a safety.