By Dave Begel Contributing Writer Published Jan 26, 2010 at 1:08 AM

I can't help but wonder what my life is going to be like without Brett Favre.

Someday I am going to wake up and he will not be around. Someday I will sit down to write a column, and Brett Favre is not going to be among the subject choices.

But not yet. No, sir, not quite yet.

The game was a classic but it felt really weird to find myself rooting for the Minnesota Vikings. I was watching the game with John Sieger and he remarked how odd it seemed for me to be cheering for Minnesota. But root, I did, and it was all because of Favre.

I'm going to continue to love pro football even after Favre leaves for good. But it's not going to be the same.

I hope all those people who have put Favre pictures on their dart boards watched this game. I am so sick of hearing those people, on talk radio, at online sites, readers who talk back to my column and belittle this man. Anyone who says "I told you so" has never played the game. They've never cheered for Audie Murphy or that little gymnast who did an Olympic vault with a broken ankle.

What we saw Sunday night was a genuine American hero. Flawed, yes, but a hero.

John Wayne. Lou Gehrig saying goodbye. Michael Jordan with the flu. Kirk Gibson.

Brett Favre stands there with all of them. And I don't care what the naysayers babble about.

The play after Favre got hurt said more about Favre than anything I'm going to write or that anybody is going to say. He was having trouble even standing up, but when the ball popped out of Percy Harvin's arms, Favre mixed it up trying to recover. He blocked and dived into the mess. He had absolutely no fear.

When they talk about an athlete leaving it all on the field, this is the guy they are talking about.

Sure he throws interceptions. Sure he is sometimes involved in a bobbled handoff. But he shows up. Game after game. Play after play. He was getting killed Sunday night, but he wasn't even close to staying down. Troy Aikman said it best.

"He always gets up."

It's impossible to list all the moments in this game when this quarterback proved over and over how special he is. His critics, feckless babies that they are, call him a drama queen. But that's not it. He is the king of drama. The football field is his kingdom, and everybody knows it.

Everything that is great about the world of sports can be found in this guy. He's got the skill. He's got heart. He's got a sense of humor. He understands the drama of the situation. He gives us thrills and he breaks our hearts. If he were an actor, they'd say that he fills the stage around him. He has presence. There is something magnificent about him.

He made a terrible throw at the end of regulation. A terrible throw. He needed to make a great throw because his team had fumbled chances to win down the drain. They dropped the ball and they needed a great throw, or even no throw. Just run or just fall down. But don't make that throw. You knew, however, that Brett Favre was going to make that throw. He was going to try.

However, if you have an ounce of sense or compassion, you love him in spite of that throw. Or maybe even because of it. Heroes don't need to be perfect. In fact, we love them even more when they aren't.

Maybe Favre is going to retire and stay retired. Maybe he'll come back. Maybe he'll waffle. Maybe this is the last time I'm going to write about how I feel about this man. If it is, I'm sad. We are all going to miss him a lot. A lot.

There aren't that many heroes around anymore. Not like this one. 

Dave Begel Contributing Writer

With a history in Milwaukee stretching back decades, Dave tries to bring a unique perspective to his writing, whether it's sports, politics, theater or any other issue.

He's seen Milwaukee grow, suffer pangs of growth, strive for success and has been involved in many efforts to both shape and re-shape the city. He's a happy man, now that he's quit playing golf, and enjoys music, his children and grandchildren and the myriad of sports in this state. He loves great food and hates bullies and people who think they are smarter than everyone else.

This whole Internet thing continues to baffle him, but he's willing to play the game as long as OnMilwaukee.com keeps lending him a helping hand. He is constantly amazed that just a few dedicated people can provide so much news and information to a hungry public.

Despite some opinions to the contrary, Dave likes most stuff. But he is a skeptic who constantly wonders about the world around him. So many questions, so few answers.