First off, I’ve been a die-hard Cowboys fan since I was 7 after they defeated Bill Cowher and the Steelers in the ‘95 Superbowl. However, aside from Dallas, I do cheer for a few other teams because I like a player or coach on the squad: the Broncos and DJ Williams, the Dolphins and the legendary Big Tuna, the Colts and Manning, the Saints and Bush/Vilma/Brees, or the Vikings and Adrian Peterson to name a few. Whenever the ‘Boys have a bye or aren’t playing at the time I try to watch one of these other teams as much as possible. However unlike the Cowboys, who no matter what they do I will follow religiously, my appreciation for these teams is very volatile and often depends greatly on my admiration for one or two of their players and not the team itself.

The best example of this can be seen in my current dilemma with the Minnesota Vikings. In the early years of the millennium I couldn’t really tell you much about the Vikings other than 1) the Dante Culpepper and Randy Moss’ domination that culminated in an MVP like performance in ‘04 for Culpepper (I unfortunately drafted him in my fantasy the next year) and 2) the famous boat party incident that I was unfortunately not invited to. I mean you would think that Fred Smoot would know that your boy KC is a big fan of both boat parties and hookers. It wasn’t until Adrian Peterson slid to Minnesota in the ‘07 draft that I started watching the Vikings frequently. Last season the Vikings became my second favorite team in the league and I watched almost every game to see AD run the show. But with rumors of Brett Favre joining the Vikings next season, my new found admiration of the Vikings may have reached an abrupt and unfortunate end.

To truly understand what I am trying to convey I will give you the cliff notes version of my history with the two players:

Adrian Peterson: I started paying close attention to Peterson when he was a senior in high school at Palestine HS and it was rumored that he would be attending my favorite college team, Oklahoma. One season later Peterson was dominating the college ranks, Oklahoma was on its way to a BCS national title game, and I had found my new man crush. After rushing for 1,925 yards and 15 TDs Peterson was robbed of the Heisman trophy and the Sooners came up lame against USC but everything would work out for Peterson. After joining the Vikings, Peterson won the rookie of the year award and set the single game rushing record.

Brett Favre: Cries a lot, likes men, retires every off season, thinks he is an elite QB still despite the facts saying otherwise (league leading 22 ints in ‘08). There is nothing I like about Brett Favre other than maybe the occasional Wrangler commercial. If someone were to slip something in his Gatorade and he never woke up the next morning I wouldn’t shed a tear. He is waging an epic battle with Rafael Nadal, Vince Carter, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Tom Brady for the top spot on the list of athletes most hated by me, KC Roberts.

So you see I am caught in an awkward position. Both my favorite and least favorite players in the NFL are now both playing for the Nordic Pirates of Minnesota and I don’t know what to do. As the title of this article explains, its amazing how one player can so rapidly change my opinion of a team I once considered my second favorite in the league.

Here are a few other examples of how one player has changed my view of an entire franchise:

Vince Carter: I live in Toronto so I don’t have to explain my dislike for VC. With the recent trade of Carter to the Magic, Orlando has gone from one of my top 10 teams, due in large part to Rashard Lewis, to one of my least favorite in the league. Also with the addition of Lee and the subtraction of Carter, NJ is a young team I am excited to watch next season.

Manu Ginobili: The combination of the Admiral and the Big Fundamental made the Spurs one of my favorite teams in the league. But Ginobili’s European style of play and frequent flopping changed my opinion quickly. I don’t think I have watched a Spurs game from start to finish since then because I can’t stand their guard play.

Mike Singletary: The second I saw Singletary’s hilariously abusive rant after his first game as the head coach of the 49ers I knew I was going start paying a lot more attention to San Fransisco. As a Cowboy’s fan I never liked the 49ers because of their 90’s rivalry and because one of my best childhood friends was a die hard Niners fan. But now with Mike’s hard nosed playing style I’m actually excited to watch the Niners next year.

Now I have to find some way to cheer for Adrian Peterson while praying that Brett Favre re-injures his shoulder or is stoned to death by the faithful Cheeseheads when the Vikings visit Lambeau later this year. It is really frustrating that this situation had to even come about. Two months ago I was ecstatic; it seemed as if Favre was on his way out of the NFL, Peterson was coming off another successful season, TO was out of Dallas, and the excitement of the NFL Draft was in full force. Now everything is going wrong, Farve is back in the NFL playing for Vikings and Tom Brady was recently named the player of the decade by ESPN. What’s next? DeMarcus Ware demands a trade after Free Reign doesn’t let him join the band?

If there is someone in sports who makes your blood boil let us know about it in the comments.

- KC Roberts