A man and his journey as a fanatic. Go Vikes.

Those of you who are uninterested in sports, specifically American Football, I ask to pardon me as I vent and express myself. I have been a Minnesota Viking fan since 1973. I was 8 years old and it happened at an A&P grocery store while shopping with my Mom. At the check out she gave me a quarter (25 cents) to get out of her hair while she paid for her items. I went to a vending machine that dispensed miniature football helmets of the NFL. I put in my quarter, turned the knob, and out came this purple helmet with horns on either side. At home I remember going up to my dad (who had tried to make me a Skin's fan early on) and as he was shaving I asked, "Dad, who is this?". He answered, "That's the Minnesota Vikings.". So I shoot back, "Are they any good?". At the time the Vikings were in contention for the Super Bowl every year and had already been to two against the Chiefs (Joe Kapp) and the Dolphins (Fran Tarkenton). So my dad replies, "Yeah, they're a real good team.". That was it, I remember to this day saying to him, "OK, this is my favorite team then.". It has been almost a defining moment in my life. Even today, friends I haven't seen in years would come up to me and make references to my fanaticism for the Vikings. In the 70's I watched my team get beaten by the Steelers (in a close game) and then being totally embarrassed by the Oakland Raiders in 76'. I was a stat freak and always kept up with my team through out the year. That was not an easy task early on because there was no ESPN, or NFL network, or Internet to rely on for info. I got papers sent to me from friends in Minnesota, and subscribed to the Viking Update to stay up to date.

    Chuck Foreman was my idol and his jersey was the first replica I ever had. The 80's were mostly a time of mediocrity for the team and I felt my life reflected it. I used to kid that 9 and 7 was the story of my life. Just a tad above average and maybe enough to be recognized but only just in time to watch me fail to make it all the way. 87' was a great year during a strike season and we barely lost to the Redskins in the NFC championship game as Washington went on to destroy the Broncos and Doug Williams earned the MVP. Then came the Herschel Walker trade as the management sought to acquire the "last piece of the puzzle" and finally win their first Super Bowl. In turn we surrendered many key players and also gave the Cowboys all the picks they needed to be the team of the nineties. As a matter of fact, the Cowboys used the number one pick we traded to them to select a player I had my own eye on had the trade not happened. A little known Florida running back named Emmett Smith. Ouch.

Then came 1998 and the most prolific scoring team in NFL history (at the time). Randall Cunningham, Robert Smith, Cris Carter, and rookie phenom Randy Moss lit up the league in addition to an unprecedented perfect season by our kicker Gary Anderson.
Going 15 and 1 (no team up to then had never went 15 and 1 and NOT won the Super Bowl- see 85' Bears and 89' 49ers) the team literally embarrassed the competition and appeared to be unstoppable as they made it to the NFC Championship against the 14 and 2 Atlanta Falcons. I felt so confident that this was a Viking victory that I invited friends and coworkers to my house for a party where I furnished Beer and Hooters wings. I mean, this was it. The payoff to all my years of loyalty and perseverance. Then as time wound down and with Minnesota up by 7, coach Denny Green called out the leagues only perfect kicker in it's entire history to put it out of reach with a 30 yarder. It's done I thought. Super Bowl here we come. Yessss. Then the bottom dropped out. Wide Right!!! Missed chip shot. What! Atlanta took the ball and marched down field with renewed hope and tied the game. Overtime comes, Atlanta gets their shot and Morten Andersen wins it. Heart breaker. All my friends were invited to see me crushed when I was over confident and took it on the chin. I thought there was nothing worse.
Then I watched my Vikings lose in the playoffs by the team who took their record for highest scoring offense, the St. Louis Rams. Next I had to endure a 40 to 0 beating in the NFC Championship by the New York Giants. I watched that entire game alone in my bedroom like a masochist. As of late, I have lost the desire to watch games all the way through that appear lost early on, particularly on Monday night. I usually have to work early and I am not sacrificing sleep to see a 35 to 14 blow out when we are already 6 and 8. But in the past I was the kind of fan who felt obligated to suffer along with all the other die hards.
After that Giant blow out a couple mediocre seasons passed with a spectacular season from Daunte' Culpepper put in between and then the Vikes picked Adrian Peterson. Perhaps the best player outside of Fran Tarkenton and Cris Carter that the team has ever had on it's roster. He's a hard runner much like Earl Campbell and Walter Payton. His style is to make the one tackling him think twice about the angle he took to tackle him. He rings bells and avoids the sideline. Ringing bells.
That style of play is not conducive to longevity in the league and aside from Walter, no player has used it and left the game on his terms. I know our time with Peterson in purple is limited and to have him and not get to the big show would be to fail one of the hardest running backs in league history.
In 2008 the impossible happened. Minnesota signed Brett Favre and after the initial instinct to vomit passed I accepted him and his desire to give it his best shot with his former rival. The result was one of the most memorable seasons I have ever experienced as a fan. Miracle comebacks and last second wins as Favre had statistically his greatest season in a career spanning nearly two decades. As the season came to it's conclusion, the Vikings and Saints were fighting for home field advantage. Entering the playoffs, it was New Orleans that the road to the Super Bowl went through.
   Our first playoff game was a divisional game against the Dallas Cowboys. Prognosticators had this being the end of the road for Favre and his Vikings. They were content to say he did all he could and it would be a respectable end to an incredible career. Over the years, I have gained this almost sixth sense about my team and I know when things look good, when they look bad, and when things are about to go to hell in a hand basket. For this game at home, I felt very good. The Vikings toyed with Dallas like a cat does a cornered mouse. Dallas's QB, Tony Romo was constantly harassed as the defense showed it was more than formidable. Meanwhile, Favre sent the Cowboy defense to the crying room, quite literally, scoring a late touchdown as an exclamation mark to a totally dominating win, making the score 34 to 3. Things could not be better going into the NFC Championship in the Super Dome.
    But you see, despite the great and "magical" year Favre was having, he was not the heart warming story for the league. Oh his was a great story, but it wasn't as endearing as the story for the Saints. Hurricane Katrina had decimated the town and it was just now trying to come back from all the tragedy. The nation had a love hate relationship with Favre but no one out side of Minnesota could say they weren't rooting for the Saints.
   The game began with the Vikings scoring first and it went back and forth from there. Adrian Peterson score 3 touchdowns on powerful running and Farve played like the warrior he has demonstrated through out his career.
   I could see something was definitely not right as the game started. Players for the Saints Defense were hitting Favre in ways that said they were looking to take him out. I deduced this after watching a safety blitz by former Viking and Favre team mate, Darren Sharper. He went low on his old team mate as if to "shoot his knee" and injure Brett. This was an immediate omen to me that the Saints were willing to play cheap and dirty to get the win. The Vikings, for their part, did their share to lose the game with an unusual amount of turnovers and miscues. However, after the game was over, the stats clearly showed a game in which the Vikings dominated in all phases.
Favre was not to be denied his moment and weathered every late hit and cheap shot meant to take him out. On a particular play in which he was intercepted, Favre was hit late both high and low and it resulted in breaking his left ankle. He was carried from the field with Saint players high fiving and saying "Favre is done.". But he wasn't. He was back for the next series and lead the offense down field for another touch down.
As the game went on, you couldn't help but realize the officials were favoring the Saints in every aspect. Obvious late hits and malicious play was ignored and allowed to continue.
In the waning minutes with the score tied at 28, the Vikings were driving for a game winning field goal as time expired. Then, the offense was called for 12 men on the field and lost just enough yardage to wait on the field goal and attempt to gain a few more yards. It was at this point that the overwhelming feeling came over me that this was going to be another heartbreak. I just didn't know exactly how my team was going to give it to me. Then came the play. Favre dropped back, under pressure, he rolled right, looked left, and threw across his body in a way he so frequently did in the past with different results. The ball just didn't have it. It was a fraction of a second too late to Sydney Rice, his favorite target through out the season, and it was picked off by Tracy Porter and the game would go to over time. Over time was a mere formality as the wind was gone from the Viking sails and yet another Saints kicker would end their season in the most painful of ways. That game was one of the most exciting I had ever witnessed and ironically one of the most painful. Not as painful to me as it was to Favre.
Here we are today, March of 2012. Favre is retired, the Saints were Super Bowl Champs that year, and now their entire staff is being punished for creating a "bounty" program designed to give players the incentive to purposefully injure opposing players or at a minimum take them out of the game. It was authorized all they way to the top, ending with coach of the year Sean Payton. He has received the punishment of a one year suspension without pay, the defensive coordinator has been banned from the league, and the team has been fined a half a million dollars.
I say not enough. I say take the Lombardi trophy and leave the Champion vacant for that season. The officiating crew should also be investigated and barred from playoff games.
I do not say this as a sore loser looking for excuses but as a fan who feels if the game had been fairly played and officiated without bias I would have experienced something I have faithfully waited over 35 years for. Personally, I feel as slighted as the team itself by another team I now dislike in ways I cannot describe. Say what you will, but if you attempt to see things from my perspective you may understand. This venting and sharing I have just placed here on my blog will be the last time I discuss this without being asked. But I feel a catharsis in doing so and I thank everyone who ventured this far. Please feel free to post your own comments to my contributions and be honest. I can take it.