A True Vikings Fan's Outlook on Brett Favre

--As seen on SportsCenter--

The Favre saga just will not go away…

This past February, when Favre announced his retirement, I predicted that we would be seeing more of his name across news media later in the offseason.

Well, here it is. And here we are. The looming questions on Brett Favre discussing the possibility of returning to the NFL—three years after originally thinking of retiring from the league—have re-surfaced from the depths.

After being released from the New York Jets last week—after they drafted QB Mark Sanchez from USC—Favre is on the market. And the only team he is looking at is the Purple and Gold, the Minnesota Vikings. The team he hated more than anything for 16 years of his NFL career is now his “Dream Team.”

As a true Vikings fan since birth—my dad propped a Fran Tarkenton jersey on my chest at just two months old—I have bled for the Purple and Gold.

Once I could understand football and the basics of the game, I learned to despise the Green Bay Packers. And the guy most synonymous with the Packers all my life? You guessed it. Brett Favre.

The image of No. 4 was engraved into my mind at an early age. We hated him. We wanted him to fail. Although I respected him as a player, he was my family’s most hated player in the National Football League. Hands down. Why, though?

Maybe it was his ease of winning. Maybe it was fear. Maybe it was the fact he would always win in under 40-degree weather. Or maybe it was simply the fact that he was the quarterback, the leader, the icon, of my most hated team.

As simple as it is, let’s be honest. That’s probably it. Players are greatly defined by the colors they wear on Sundays. I love Adrian Peterson because he’s a Viking. I hate Jay Cutler because he’s a Bear. I love Percy Harvin (now) because he’s a Viking. I hate Calvin Johnson because he’s a Lion.

The same goes with Brett Favre. Even though I regard him as the greatest quarterback to ever play the game, and I greatly respect him, I hate him at the same time.

But back to the present.

Today, the most important information on the ongoing situation arose. Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings coaches and front office personnel will be meeting this week to discuss the future.

My stomach dropped when I saw this on ESPN.com.

But when you look at it deeper, though, it seems to be the most perfect fit for everyone involved.

Even me.

The Vikings are a team “built to win now” and in need of a quarterback that can do more than just “manage” the game, but instead play well—and throw 30 balls per game—in taking some pressure off of Adrian Peterson and their deadly running game.

Brett Favre is a quarterback who still has the desire to play. Still has the juice to play. And has the adrenaline to play against the Green Bay Packers, a team that now is a bad seed in Favre’s eyes.

Favre knows that going to the Vikings, he is going into a situation that can only be profitable. Going to the playoffs is almost a guarantee and the Super Bowl reach is now as easy as a baby reaching for his pacifier.

My thoughts on Favre are quickly changing.

He has energy unique to NFL quarterbacks, not to mention amazing arm strength and accuracy. Maybe I do like where this is going? Hmm.

I knew this offseason was going to be just like the last three. Brett Favre starring in his own soap opera by going back and forth on retiring. Not to mention, the media constantly overlooking the entire situation.

After a brief three-month hold-out, Favre is back in the news. Originally, I was fed up with the whole situation. But I seem to be coming around. Like a true sports fan.

My adolescent fandome that always hated on Favre is quickly leaving my mind, as I begin to look for the future. The vision of Favre in Purple is clearing up day by day.

It has taken a lot of time, but the true Viking is soon to open his arms and welcome No. 4 to the Metrodome. (And No. 4 is not referenced to the current No. 4, John David Booty.)

My true fandom to the Minnesota Vikings takes allegiance over my personal hatred on Favre. Even though he is only good for a year, maybe two at the most, the potential the Vikings can reach is unimaginable. It only excites me.

Yesterday, I hated Brett Favre because he was a Packer (and Jet). Today, I begin my admiration for him. Simply because he could be a Viking.

This story is a true testament to the power of teams in the NFL. You love and hate with that as the foundation.

My most hated athlete in any sports and in the entire world joining forces with my most favorite team in the entire world is now sounding like a good combination. Really?

It sure is a tricky one to follow.