Vikings (and their fans) Will Be Just Fine

The news broke late this afternoon. The Star-Tribune's Judd Zulgad informed us that Brad Childress called to say that Brett Favre was planning to remain retired. The months-long saga was finally over. We had our answer. And Vikings fans, and the football world in general, was shocked. The assumption all along was that Favre would be coming back. I mean, why else would he have the surgery?

But is it really over? Is Favre officially done? That remains to be seen. It is very possible that a couple of weeks into training camp, he may get the urge to play again, and maybe he will even call the Vikings back and see if they would still take him.

In my opinion, the second that training camp starts on Friday should be the exact moment that Vikings leadership should delete Favre's number from their phones. In fact, they may want to get new phones and forget to give Favre or his agent the new numbers.

I know that there are many die-hard Vikings fans out there who are very disappointed with this news. But I think it is important to remember a few things. Before the team even had rumors about Favre, there was some excitement about the acquisition of Sage Rosenfels who will compete (and likely beat) Tarvaris Jackson as the team's starting quarterback. The Vikings won six games in Brad Childress's first season. Then they won eight games. Last year, they went 10-6 and won the NFC North. The trajectory of this team is exciting.

And so are the players. This team is loaded with star talent. Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor are both still in the backfield. Bobby Wade and Bernard Berrian will be joined by top pick Percy Harvin this year. Visanthe Shiancoe became a legit threat last year. The offensive line should be stronger. The defense should be even stronger this year led by Jared Allen, Chad Greenway and Antoine Winfield are all back. The Williams Wall will be around for no fewer than a dozen games. This team has tremendous talent. 

And the quarterback position still remains a question mark. But there is still no reason to believe this team can't win 11 or 12 games and still win the division and advance in the playoffs. How many more games would they have won with Favre at the helm? One game? Maybe 2? Would Favre really make this a 13-14 win team?

So, as disappointing as many Vikings fans may choose to be for a day or so, those same fans should be very excited about the start of training camp in Mankato. They should still be very excited about how good this team can be this season. They will be great fun to watch.