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by Gonzo on Nov 9, 2007 8:17 AM CST in News Comment 6 comments

A rather amusing story from, of all places, the folks at Bloomberg News. The article is entitled "Vikes' Peterson Too Injury-Prone for NFL Record, Oddsmakers Say."

A couple of "highlights," such as they are:

Peterson has an upright running style, making him more of a target for opposing defenses, and the former Heisman Trophy runner-up missed all or part of 11 games during his final two seasons at the University of Oklahoma because of an ankle sprain and broken collarbone. Online sports book BetUS.com lists Peterson's odds to break Dickerson's all-time record of 2,105 yards at 2-1 as the Vikings visit the Green Bay Packers this weekend.

``He's injury-prone, that's our biggest concern,'' Reed Richards, a spokesman for Costa Rica-based BetUS.com, said in a telephone interview. ``He runs with that chip on his shoulder and you could see him grinding himself down.''

and

The durability problems scared some NFL teams. Vikings Vice President of Player Personnel Rick Spielman said before this year's draft that teams were concerned how Peterson would hold up, and the player slipped to the No. 7 pick.

``That is the concern with the high running style, but you don't see people catching him,'' said former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith, who holds the NFL record of 18,355 rushing yards and now works as an analyst for ESPN. ``A lot of times, he has a high running style because he's in the open field. When he gets in traffic, he lowers his shoulder and is able to get around people.''

Smith said Peterson will learn how to avoid unnecessary hits and reduce the wear-and-tear on his body as he gets older. Bob Stoops, who coached Peterson for three years at Oklahoma, says his former star will only get better.

``He's going to keep maturing physically, hard as it is to believe,'' Stoops said at a news conference this week. ``He's going to gain more strength and more power. I don't think he's done.''

First of all, let's drop the "injury-prone" crap when we talk about Adrian Peterson, shall we? The guy sprained an ankle, which can happen to any RB at any level on any play, and he broke a collarbone on a freak play at the end of a huge TD run against Iowa State. It's not as though the guy has had knee surgery 3 or 4 times. It's not like he's got bad hamstrings. Simply being injured does not make one "injury-prone." The "injury-prone" thing is largely perpetuated by the media types that can't stand the fact that a player so spectacular fell right to a team and a media market that they, by and large, absolutely can't stand. Had Peterson ended up in New England or Indianapolis or Green Bay or Pittsburgh or something, the words "injury-prone" wouldn't be coming out of anyone's mouth regarding the man known as Purple Jesus.

To those people I say, "Get used to it, because he's going to be here for a while."

Second of all, take a look at the defenses that Minnesota plays in the second half of the season, and where they rank against the rush:

Green Bay - 8th
Oakland - 30th
New York Giants - 11th
Detroit - 12th
San Francisco - 24th
Chicago - 26th
Washington - 9th
Denver - 32nd

We start with an (allegedly) outstanding Green Bay defense that managed to hold Peterson to just under 10 yards a carry the first time these two teams got together. Do you suppose they've magically come up with an answer for him since then? I doubt it. I wouldn't expect Detroit to keep Peterson contained again, either.

There are only two legitimately tough rush defenses on this list. . .the Giants and the Redskins, and the Redskins game is in the comfy confines of the Metrodome. And if Peterson IS within striking distance of either record, check out who the Vikings get in the season finale. That's right, a date with the worst rush defense in the league. I'm not saying that Denver's rush defense is terrible, but they allowed a Packers running back to go for 100+ against them a couple weeks ago. That's pretty pathetic. Just imagine what someone with actual talent. . .like, say, Adrian Peterson. . .could do to that defense.

So, to review, Adrian Peterson is no more injury-prone than any other running back in the National Football League. . .and, as always, regardless of what team you cheer for, Adrian Peterson is better than your team's running back.

Continue enjoying your Friday, ladies and gentlemen!

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purple jesus

Do you know where this Purple Jesus talk originated?

I think that I first read it here but I have been seeing it more and more lately.

So was it you that coined the phrase?

by vikeincheeseland on Nov 9, 2007 11:25 AM CST reply actions 0 recs

Unfortunately

I can't take credit for that one. It comes from the folks at Kissing Suzy Kolber.

You can find them at http://kissmesuzy.blogspot.com. Highly recommended.

The Daily Norseman - The greatest Vikings' site on the Internet!

by Gonzo on Nov 9, 2007 11:41 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

Thank you

i do however think that your site here was the first place that i had read it.

I have that site bookmarked already and am going to try and find the article/post where the name is coined

thanks

by vikeincheeseland on Nov 10, 2007 11:37 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs

not to be a downer

But don't rookies tend to slow down a bit?

I know one could argue that he was on the bench a lot at the begining of the season so that may be a moot point, but don't rookies tend to fade a little during the end of the season?

I'd love to see Peterson break the record, but I'm just throwing out another thought to be considered. Also we have Childress calling plays and who knows when he'll stop calling peterson's number.

Hopefully none of this will happen, but it may still be something worth considering.

by Gorilla Bird on Nov 9, 2007 2:34 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Watch

Oakland this weekend. See how many yards the pitiful Cedric Benson racks up against the Oakland rush defense. Triple that number and you'll have what AP runs for next week.

I'm certainly not going to tout him as the second coming of Jim Brown or Barry Sanders just yet, but watching Peterson so far has been a lot of fun. People are already starting to call him the best running back ever, living here in Chicago, I might get crucified for even thinking that, so I'm not ready to give him that crown now. I will say that if he stays healthy, this is going to be a fun decade to watch Vikings football.

Living in Chicago, I love talking to Bears fans about OUR Adrian Peterson

by HectorVillanueva on Nov 9, 2007 9:38 PM CST reply actions 0 recs

Ouch

Ummmm, should we wait to see the MRI results before pre-comparing Peterson's numbers against the Raiders to Benson's? Maybe Peterson could triple Benson's numbers on one leg but if he's not healthy Childress should sit him since the Vikings' season is officially over.

by Commentator on Nov 12, 2007 8:11 AM CST reply actions 0 recs