I like the Vikings. I love the Vikings. And I hate the Vikings sometimes, too.

But what I also dislike is when people about this time of year say, “I’m ready for football season to begin.”

They may not realize it, but to me, the listener, it sounds akin to saying they are ready for the end of summer. I spend all winter long listening to people, including me, moan that they are ready for winter to go away. Therefore, I don’t want to hear a peep in the warm months about anything going any faster than it already does.

Savor July and August, whether they give us humidity, rain, lightning, wind or just beautiful sunny days. Any summer weather in Minnesota is better than winter weather.

I like football. It will be fun to watch when September gets here. But until then I am watching Joe Mauer, Carlos Gomez and the Minnesota Twins. I might even watch a little of Tiger Woods, Zach Johnson and the PGA Tour and secretly wish there was a disc golf channel. Alas, watching pro disc golf players compete is what the Internet provides.

But I will not watch football on a TV set until September gets here. (I can understand going to Mankato to watch them in person at the training camp.) For college and pros, the preseason seems to start a little bit sooner each year and the postseason seems to end a little later each year.

Lengthening the ordeal of any sports season already makes it difficult for fans to follow. Longer seasons. Sky-high ticket prices. Even paying to see some games on TV. Wouldn’t it seem the more they raise the bar to be a fan the more fans they block out? And pro sports leagues wonder why they are losing market shares.

People are taking interest in accessible sports. I was telling a friend that when these elementary kids get in their 20s, disc golf, which already is growing fast, will be huge. The sport is very accessible and inexpensive.

By the way, I am glad Brett Favre won’t be wearing purple. I know, I know, all of his career the poor guy had longed to play for the Minnesota Vikings. Wearing the Packer uniform colors of cheese and rotten cheese all of his years must have been humiliating. Plus, I’ve grown accustomed to rooting against Favre, and so have other loyal fans I know. There were high fives in the Tribune office among some employees when the news came that Favre wouldn’t be a Viking.

I am looking forward to seeing Sage Rosenfels play quarterback. Like me, he went to Iowa State University. I remember running on the field at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City in 2000 when the Cyclones defeated the Hawkeyes for the third year in a row (a streak that extended to five). I went up to Rosenfels and patted his shoulderpads and said, “Good game, Sage!”

Rosenfels is from Maquoketa, Iowa. He went as a fourth-round pick for the Washington Redskins in the 2001 NFL Draft, the 109th pick overall. He spent that year on the bench as the third-string quarterback.

The Miami Dolphins acquired him, and there he saw action as the backup. He was known for comebacks. He entered a game against the Buffalo Bills with the score 23-3 after the starter was injured. The Dolphins came back to win 24-23. He started a few games for the Fish in 2004 and 2005.

He was the backup for the Houston Texans but started many games. Rosenfels was known for comebacks there, too, when he would enter games. He threw four touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to take the score from 32-7 to 36-35 in a game against the Tennessee Titans.

In games with the Texans when he was the starter he went 6-4. He always has been just about to be the league’s next breakout star, like a Tony Romo or a Tom Brady. Rosenfels has been good but just needs to find great.

If he did so as a Viking, that would be magnificent.

Remember, Brett Favre was once just an obscure Atlanta Falcon.

Ahem. um, yes, but I am watching baseball.

Tribune Managing Editor Tim Engstrom’s column appears every Tuesday.