It's a feeling Minnesota sports fans know all too well. A team is winning, a lot. Perhaps it's a "little engine that could" team that's overachieving and could make waves in the post season. It could be a team with good players that could go all the way if they "get hot" at the right time. Or maybe it's a team full of talent that's dominating its sport and has even national pundits wondering if a championship is in the team's future. As a fan you're excited about the team, but the excitement is mixed in with a healthy dose of dread.

This is the reality of being a Minnesota sports fan. No matter how good a team is you always feel something will happen to derail your hopes and dreams. The Twins make a historic run to get into the post season only to get swept out of the divisional round by a nondescript Oakland team. The Minnesota Wild shock the hockey world by beating the Colorado Avalanche only to be hit by a brick wall in the form of a hot goalie that gave up one goal to the Wild in a sweep of a series. The Timberwolves have a championship caliber team heading into the Western Conference finals only to see their second best player unable to play due to back spasms. The Vikings, with one of the most prolific offenses in history, has a kicker that was perfect throughout the regular season miss at the most crucial time.

Those are just four of the numerous times the dreams of a Minnesota sports fan have been crushed. So no wonder we can't enjoy a team's success without a sense of dread. We're always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I watched Monday Night Football and saw the Saints toy with the Patriots. A shadow was cast over me and my couch. The shadow was from a giant shoe, adorned with a fleur-de-lis, waiting to stomp on my Super Bowl hopes. I saw an unstoppable juggernaut of an offense stand between the Vikings and a championship. I've been speaking of my fear of the Vikings losing to the Packers in the playoffs (I still fear that) but the whole point may be moot. Does it matter if nobody can beat the Saints?

Perhaps I'm getting too negative. I have to remind myself of a few things. First off, the number one and number two offenses of all time in terms of scoring (the '98 Vikings and '07 Patriots) both failed to win a Super Bowl. (WARNING: Sports Cliché Approaching) Offense will get you far, but defense wins championships. The Vikings have a better overall defense than the Saints.

Speaking of the 1998 Vikings, everyone remembers their soul crushing loss to Atlanta, but some people are trying to use that loss to try and create some sort of reverse mojo. They say this will be the year things even out. This year the Saints are the '98 Vikings and the Vikings will be the '98 Falcons. I like it, but the Falcons lost in the Super Bowl. That I don't like.

My one true ray of hope comes from two different seasons from the same Minnesota team. That's right, the '87 and '91 Twins. That's the team that proved that Minnesota sports doesn't have to be as frigid as the winter. A championship is possible! It doesn't have to be all doom and gloom!

I have braced myself for the other shoe to drop. It may be a green and gold shoe, a black and gold shoe, or a shoe with a picture of 28 putting the ball on the ground, but I'm ready. However, I'm also enjoying this Vikings season one game at a time. Besides, one team in the league HAS to win the Super Bowl, so why not the Vikings? (That was a rhetorical question, please don't answer it. I'm trying to be positive.)