Well, that didn’t take long. Had I been wondering if there were any Viking fans out there who actually did want a preview of their team, I wouldn’t have had to wait long for the answer.
And though I apologized in the first sentence for the lack of football talk, I can see where I might have let you down. I can be selfish sometimes, sorry about that.
I agreed with many points in Mr. Lange’s (I think we should keep the formality thing going) response. Our fanships, most of the time, are almost predetermined for us. As fans, we need these connections, no matter how much they hurt at times, because they thread through so much of our lives; and we also need them for those spectacular moments where they stand above almost everything else. Furthermore, a huge part of these connections are emotional, and, since you mentioned Simmons, “sports hate” can play a role as well.
Of course I hate the Vikings, the biggest reason being is that they are the major threat, and therefore a rival, to my team on a consistent basis. I worry about my team losing to them, so I “hate” them. I never want them to have success because that would hinder my own team’s success. Call it irrational, but these feelings as a fan make sense to me.
For my preview I looked at the “questions about how the organization is run,” as Mr. Lange put it. I called them worse things than that, but the respect for Brad Childress’ coaching ability from his own team is definitely something that could affect the Vikings’ season, as are the high stakes. To me, those are points that could’ve been brought up in any Viking season preview (minus the gimp comparisons, I suppose).
The buzzword came when I said they didn’t deserve to win in terms of “sports justice.” And here is where the difference between what Mr. Lange and I were saying begins to come into play.
In terms of the way the franchise decided to do business with Favre – the whole situation is a little questionable, to say the least – they don’t, in my own very-biased brain, deserve a championship as a reward. And really, it could have been any franchise that did this, but since it’s the Vikings, an extra component is added for me…clearly.
Obviously this does not have any bearing to on-field happenings. It is a way for me to rationalize why they can’t, or shouldn’t, win. Because I know damn well there are plenty of reasons they can win, and those are scary to think about (but I’m trying to get there, promise).
The other difference, the one I disagreed with most, came from Mr. Lange’s discussion of the fan base. Aside from the Favre interception video (which I like because of the radio announcers), I did not directly attack or somehow blame the fan base. People will like who they want, it’s fine; I will not always agree, but then again I don’t have to — and due to the Favre/Packers split in Green Bay, it is just something that must be dealt with, as there are people I love with whom I just cannot discuss this topic; you have to avoid it and forget it. I wrote about why I despised the Viking franchise and what they are doing, not the fans.
Mr. Lange is right: no fans, because of the tireless, heart-wrenching, non-stop dedication it takes to really be a fan, deserve a lifetime of disappointment and pain from their teams. Rightfully so, I and others are a little sick of being beaten down by every Viking and/or Favre-hater this side of Portugal for their failures. It’s understandable and a good reason as to why you took my attack on the Vikings as an attack on their fans – the team is a huge part of you, and you are a fan.
Maybe in a perfect utopia all fans could experience the ultimate win. But here on Earth, we all can’t have that, and the fact of the matter is, me and you Mr. Lange, will never share happiness from football. That doesn’t mean we can’t be happy in other arenas of life – maybe you enjoy a Qdoba burrito as much as I do – but not in the NFL.
The Packers and Vikings will always be in eachother’s way. I will always hate the Vikings; you will always hate the Packers. It’s cool, that’s what makes it a rivalry. That’s what makes those games bigger than the rest. But I didn’t write that preview as an attack on fans of the Vikings, believe it or not. Just sayin’.
I guess it comes down to the fact that I am a fan first and a journalist second, since I crossed the appropriate line in Mr. Lange’s mind. The reason I love writing about sports is that I have strong feelings and connections towards them, and I like expressing said feelings. I can’t help it.
So in the end, Mr. Lange, you said it best: this is my project. I’m going to write it as such.
Whew. I hope that does it for that. At worst, we can pick it up again come October 24.
With that said, because you questioned my journalistic integrity (of which I have little to begin with), here are some thoughts on the Vikings – the football team, just for you, Mr. Lange.
Offensively, the loss of Rice for six weeks will hurt, but ultimately I don’t see it mattering a whole lot. Why? Because Harvin will play enough to be a major factor,
I thought the trade for Greg Camarillo yesterday today was really solid. Javon Walker, on the other hand, is a bit of a reach. Apparently nothing is out of the question for Favre anymore, though we will see about the ankle. Oh, and Adrian Peterson is still a beast. And I didn’t even mention the guy who worries me most: tight end Visanthe Shiancoe. He always seems to be scoring touchdowns.
Yeah, they should still be just fine scoring points.
On defense, I’ll admit it: if Jared Allen played in Green Bay, I would love him. As it stands now, he is just the guy who destroys Green Bay. So that’s a loss for me. It will come down to their front seven as usual, which should be very formidable, as usual. Their secondary is still expose-able (I don’t think that’s a word), and that will be the spot in which to hurt them.
If Brad Childress can stay out of this team’s way, they are a potentially great team. Until they’re beaten, they’re still on top of the division. Worst of luck to them.
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*Photo courtesy of Reuters/Allen Fredrickson
Twitter: twitter.com/griffingotta Email: griffingotta@gmail.com
