Two weeks ago, as the New Orleans Saints kicked an overtime field goal to beat the Minnesota Vikings, I screamed four words.

"There is a God!"

I've been a Green Bay Packers fan since I was 5, and after years of watching Brett Favre (the adulterer of Packer Nation) throw game-ending, postseason interceptions in a green and gold uniform, it was nice to have just one that didn't come back to bite me in the keister. The fact that he did it in a Vikings uniform may have renewed my faith in the justice of sports. Maybe it's seasonal depression (I almost cried the other day because a stain didn't come out of my favorite pair of blue jeans). Maybe it's the fact that I had to listen to my older brother scream the North Carolina Tar Heels school song in my face after they won their second national championship in the five last years, as I, a Duke fan, sat motionless. Or maybe it was because the hearts of all Packers fans were two sizes too small after having to witness Favre in purple and gold. Whatever it was, I was needing a win. By a win I mean a Minnesota loss. A lot was at stake. If the Vikings had won their first ever championship with my childhood bringing, gun-slinging, three-time MVPing quarterback, I don't know if I'd ever be able to pick up a Sports Illustrated again.

I was honestly thinking of giving up sports for a while. But then late in the fourth quarter, as the Vikings seemed to be closing in on a game-winning field goal, fate threw a little redemption my way. As I stood in my living room and watched Favre throw that all too-familiar, season-ending interception, I felt freer than a grocery store coupon. It was like after you've had a bad day and you find a $20 bill in your pocket. It gives you hope that the tides are about to turn.

For the Packer fans, it looks promising. Favre is too old to keep playing. He got slammed like a Tiger Woods sex-joke against the Saints, and you could tell spending 19 out of 40 years of his life in the violent NFL was catching up with him.

This again gives the Vikings their classic problem of not having a good quarterback on a team loaded with talent Even better news, Adrian Peterson has been getting full-time carries at running back in the NFL for three full seasons. Ask guys like Larry Johnson and LaDainian Tomlinson on how long the shelf life of being a premiere running back in the NFL is.

Even if Peterson has the longevity to stay at running back, his slippery hands seem to be a serious fumbling liability, anyways. The fact that Steve Hutchinson and Bryant McKinnie are starting to age also will hurt Peterson as he gains many of his yards running behind these two road graters.

So while the Vikings seem to be fading a bit, the Packers have a bright future on the horizon. Aaron Rodgers has proven himself be a top five NFL quarterback in just his second season as a starter, which is not bad considering successfully replacing a franchise hall of fame quarterback has only been done by Steve Young.

In addition, he has young talent in his receiving core like Jermichael Finley and Greg Jennings. On the defensive side of the ball, the Packers' 2nd-ranked overall defense is very promising. Cornerback Charles Woodson was the Defensive Player of the Year, and young studs like Clay Matthews and B.J. Raji are promising pieces to the new 3-4 defense the Packers transitioned to this season. Needless to say, my faith in sports hath been restored, and I'm predicting a return to glory for the Packers in the next decade.