Adrian Peterson Slowed By Ankle Injury, Only Scores Three Times In 38-14 Win Over Bills

by Christopher Gates on Dec 5, 2010 9:13 PM CST in Minnesota Vikings 2010 Season

I'll have plenty on the experience I got to have today throughout the week. . .and, believe me, it was plenty awesome. . .but I wanted to take just a brief moment in the wake of the Vikings' first two-game winning streak of the year to focus on the guy that, quite frankly, might be a better football player than any non-quarterback in the National Football League.

Adrian Peterson. . .a guy that we weren't even sure was going to play when I got to the Metrodome about two hours before game time this morning. . .put together another outstanding performance and inched himself closer to what a certain announcer would call "Viking immortality." He only carried the ball 16 times, yet managed to run for over 100 yards once again and average a healthy 6.7 yards per carry. The last of his three touchdowns came on a completely ridiculous. . .or, as we call it when referring to AP, "typical". . .43-yard sprint following a Buffalo turnover to put the final nail in the coffin of the Bills. Peterson started out running to the left, cut all the way back across the formation to his right, and then simply outran everyone wearing a red helmet into the end zone. He certainly didn't look like he was nursing a bad ankle from where I was sitting.

So, to put a capper on Adrian Peterson's performance and today's victory over the Bills. . .and it will be a brief one, because I'm dead tired at this point, since I guess you can only run on adrenaline for so long. . .here are three brief little facts about AP after his performance today. . .

-Adrian Peterson is now just the fourth player in National Football League history to rush for at least 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns in his first four NFL seasons. The other three? Just a few nobodies named Earl Campbell, Eric Dickerson, and LaDainian Tomlinson.

-Peterson came into today's game ranked third in Vikings' history in rushing touchdowns, trailing Bill Brown and Chuck Foreman. Well, he's still third in Vikings' history in rushing touchdowns, but now he trails those two gentlemen by only one touchdown, as his three scores today gave him 51 rushing scores in his Minnesota career. Both Brown and Foreman have 52. The difference? Adrian Peterson has required 58 career games to get those 51 rushing touchdowns. Foreman required 93. Brown needed 180.

-And, finally, the one I will continue to hit on every single week. . .276 total touches, 1,455 total yards, 12 total touchdowns. Zero fumbles.

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ZERO!

the only time that number is the best!!

SKOL VIKES!!

I BELIEVE...

by ArizonaVikingsFan on Dec 5, 2010 9:20 PM CST reply actions

What a Game!!

Granted, the last two teams we’ve played aren’t the cream of the crop, but we are showing spirit, and some of our lesser known players showed up to play. Team work baby. There was a recent fan post about who we could get in a trade for Peterson. Well flock that! Hope you enjoyed your day. I think that maybe the Viking’s PR people have noted that what you have assembled here is the most hardcore of the hardcore Viking fans around, and that is admirable! Take care!

by abba7 on Dec 5, 2010 9:26 PM CST reply actions

Pictures Gonzo

We want pictures!!!!!!

Was worrried about Buffalo all week long after they took the Steelers into OT last week and almost took the game. Glad I worried for nothing. Got tough one coming up this coming Sunday, so hope this was a moral booter for the whole team as it should be.

Vikings 2010: Episode 2, A New Hope - The Alliance for Vikings sanity have struck back. The evil Childress has been fired. Hope has been reinstated with the naming of Frazier as Head Coach.

by VikesFaninNM on Dec 5, 2010 9:29 PM CST reply actions

that's right..

..got our wish for 2-in a row; also got our wish for a long overdue convincing win..

…next on the docket.. beating a GOOD team.. next wk w/ nyg @ home.. let’s do it!!

"the following statement is true:
the preceding statement was false" - george carlin

by BranFavrenton on Dec 6, 2010 12:00 AM CST up reply actions

maybe a repeat of last year

except this time the Giants have something to play for ._.

by loldotcom on Dec 6, 2010 11:06 AM CST up reply actions

Defense Showed Up Too

This game was as dominate a performance by our defense as I’ve seen in quite a while. They were playing with the passion we all knew they had and were flying all over the place. Make no mistake, the Bills are a much better team than their record shows so that makes the win that much better. Lucky for Buffalo, we had 4 turnovers or it could have been worse ( still need to work on that) but overall a huge success. BTW, anybody else but me out there feel like Brian Robison should be starting at DE? That guy was a beast today constantly pressuring Fitzpatrick.

by purplegrey on Dec 5, 2010 11:09 PM CST reply actions

+1 on the Robison deal.

by bf4mvp on Dec 6, 2010 8:13 AM CST up reply actions

2011 free agents

Obviously this year has been painful, But looking ahead to next year, and maybe our last in Minnesota, I ask who are our freie agents? Ive heard that Greenway and Edwards are two defensive FA, who do we risk losing on offense? And where do we get a QB? Do we try and acquire Kolb? rely on 2TD 3 Int Jackson, or do we draft a QB, Mallet, Luck, Lockyear? We have huge potential holes, but a solid nucleus.

by david f on Dec 5, 2010 11:21 PM CST reply actions

Take a Deep, Cleansing Breath

Watch the video of Adrian Peterson showing the Bills and the entire world why he’s the best RB in the entire world. Then watch it again.

Now, savor the moment.

There’s time later for worrying about FA and acquisitions. :)

Ah, ah,
We come from the land of the ice and snow,
From the midnight sun where the hot springs blow.
The hammer of the gods will drive our ships to new lands,
To fight the horde, singing and crying: Valhalla, I am coming!
SKOL!

by DCPurple on Dec 6, 2010 8:47 AM CST up reply actions

Drafting a QB seems unlikely now

We’ve got too many wins versus the other crappy teams :P

by loldotcom on Dec 6, 2010 11:05 AM CST up reply actions

i doubt we would've drafted qb first anyway..

…i think t-jack is more serviceable at qb than say ma-don’t williams is at safety (by a lot)..also any o-line help..prob then a qb..

i’d rather win out than slide up in the draft anyway!

"the following statement is true:
the preceding statement was false" - george carlin

by BranFavrenton on Dec 6, 2010 11:27 AM CST up reply actions

Yeah, the Bills suck but...

Someone made the comment during the game that we were totally destroying a team with a crappy defense. Well, the way I look at it, that crappy defense held the Bills in some games against some good teams this year. Good teams DESTROY bad defenses, not play down to their level. That is what the Vikes did, despite turning the ball over 4 times. And oh, btw… we were still +1 on that all important TO ratio and scored points of their turnovers as well. That is something we haven’t done all year.

Three final things… Purple Jesus is VERY aptly named, I think we could get away with dealing Edwards for a higher draft pick and finally:

Zygi would be INSANE if he did not hire Coach Frazier for next season, no matter WHAT we do during the next four games. Besides, who else would be able to teach the Vikes how to shuffle?

SKOL VIKINGS!!!

by 92Y_VikesFan on Dec 5, 2010 11:35 PM CST reply actions 1 recs

Rec for the shuffle comment

by mjmrad on Dec 6, 2010 12:12 AM CST up reply actions

can't help but blame zigi at this point...

…when he canvassed the vet players as to their opinion of chilly after he cut moss, quite firmly believe had he had the cajones to pull the trigger then, we are in serious playoff contention now.. but not to be a negative nelly …GREAT win!!

"the following statement is true:
the preceding statement was false" - george carlin

by BranFavrenton on Dec 6, 2010 12:04 AM CST reply actions

A few days earlier would have been nicer

If maybe Zygi would of asked LF how he would handle MOSS and if he thought he would be OK then keep MOSS and FIRE CHILLI then before you let Moss go.

People harp on TICE not getting the pick done in time for a draft pick and losing a few spots. Chilli just threw a # 3 draft away.

by ZygiZag on Dec 6, 2010 3:31 AM CST up reply actions

2,000 yards could be within reach.

Knock on wood!

I'm still a Minnesotan at heart...

by urluckyday on Dec 6, 2010 12:18 AM CST reply actions

he'd need nearly 900 yds in 4 games..

not very likely..
..unless you are talking about total return yardage off of our INTs!

"the following statement is true:
the preceding statement was false" - george carlin

by BranFavrenton on Dec 6, 2010 9:34 AM CST up reply actions

2,000 total yards is very possible though

That’s just 545 total in the next 4 games. Still quite a tall order, but it’s only about 130 total yards per game. 100 yards rushing and a couple catches would do that.

by Cobra312004 on Dec 6, 2010 4:02 PM CST up reply actions

a romp is a romp

I don’t care if it was the Bill’s a romp is a romp. When was the last time the VIKES romped someone. Did we ever do it in the Chilli era with the KAO? Nice to enjoy a game for once.

We saw the good, the bad and the ugly with TJ. If LF does get the job it will be interesting to see what he “really thinks” of TJ. How much do we try to keep him on the team.

One thing TJ will have to realize is that as a free agent I doubt any other team willing be picking him up with STARTER money. I would suspect he will be getting BACK UP money. If your getting BACK UP money you might as well stay where you know the system. I don’t know if TJ will ever be an top 10 QB because of his panic throws and his tendency to get injured, but he could develop but right now is a OK back up. Translation we need a QB and they do not drop from the sky. Chilli had several opportunities to get one Brees, Cutler and that will be his legacy. When he first got beat by his old boss Ryan told him to fix his QB problem and he never did. But he did do things his way.

by ZygiZag on Dec 6, 2010 3:25 AM CST reply actions

Let's set this straight

Brees was never an option here. Not only did he have ZERO interest in Minnesota, we still had Daunte Culpepper as our QB then and were not looking at acquiring him. Dream all you want but Brees to New Orleans was always going to happen.

Cutler I’m still not sold on one way or the other as a player, but I’m definitely not convinced he was ever worth two 1st round picks much less an extra 3rd round pick and a starting QB on top of that. But hey, we only got Percy Harvin with one of those picks we would have traded so what’s the big deal right?

And for the record, the last time we romped someone like that was last year against the Cowboys in the playoffs. You remember, we were accused of running up the score? 34-3 was the end result on that one. Here’s a few more scores you may have forgotten from just 1 year ago: 44-7, 30-10, 36-10, 35-9, 38-10 (how great was last year?) to name a few. I hated Childress as much as the next guy but let’s not pretend nothing good ever happened when he was in charge here.

by Cobra312004 on Dec 6, 2010 5:03 AM CST up reply actions

This Holiday season

Let’s all take time out of busy schedules to realize how blessed we really are…that we get to watch Adrian Peterson play for our Minnesota Vikings.

by Cobra312004 on Dec 6, 2010 5:05 AM CST reply actions 1 recs

+28

by bf4mvp on Dec 6, 2010 8:19 AM CST up reply actions

When I saw this guy run in person...

He was certainly faster than what appears on TV. The dude can flat outrun those DBs in open space. As Cobra said – we’re flat-out Blessed to have him in Purple!

"Skol Vikings! Let's win this game Skol Vikings!

by DaRange on Dec 6, 2010 9:17 AM CST reply actions

On a bum ankle none the less!

by abba7 on Dec 6, 2010 11:57 AM CST up reply actions

Bum ankle you say?

Peterson didn’t have a bum ankle.

A bum ankle had Peterson and Peterson cured him of his bumminess!

by izziefans on Dec 6, 2010 1:10 PM CST up reply actions

Huh?

A bum ankle had Peterson and Peterson cured him of his bumminess!

I’m pretty sure I get the drift of your sentence Iz, but as I read it I am scratching my head thinking “WTF?”

by abba7 on Dec 6, 2010 7:07 PM CST up reply actions

'Mr. Akin Ayodele, #50, Left Inside LB for the Buffalo Bills....'

‘….welcome, young man, to the I JUST GOT STEAMROLLED BY ALL-DAY club!’

-regards,
Al Harris and William Gay

"the following statement is true:
the preceding statement was false" - george carlin

by BranFavrenton on Dec 6, 2010 1:12 PM CST reply actions

Most importantly...

Notice that at THIS POINT in the game (following his 2nd TD), he had 8 carries for 14 yards!

For those keeping track at home, that means he averaged 11.6 ypc on his next 8 carries for 93 of his 107 yards. And before you say “Yea, but he had that 43 yard run that inflates his average”, that means he was averaging 7.1 ypc on the other 7 runs, still pretty damn amazing on a sprained ankle.

by Cobra312004 on Dec 6, 2010 4:08 PM CST up reply actions

The Vikings got crazy lucky last Sunday....

If the Bills play the lowly vikings 100 times, the Bills would win 65 – 70 of those games.

Last Sunday didn’t matter because the Vikings peaked this season and the Bills are on the upswing.

by TrentEdwardsHoF2018 on Dec 6, 2010 4:29 PM CST reply actions

Very insightful.

Thanks for the laugh. Well…it wasn’t really a laugh…more of a chuckle…but thanks anyway.

by izziefans on Dec 6, 2010 5:23 PM CST up reply actions

What I'm getting at...

…is the Vikings, who will not make the playoffs this years, put all their dice into the 2010 season. They are an aging team who needed to win this year.

The Bills on the other hand are very young and are only 3 or 4 players away from a deep playoff run.

Sorry but that game had to depress the heck out of Minnesota.

by TrentEdwardsHoF2018 on Dec 7, 2010 11:01 PM CST up reply actions

Yeah

24-point victories always have a way of dampening the spirit.

Considering that the Bills haven’t made the post-season since they lost the Music City Miracle, how long have they been “3 or 4 players away from a deep playoff run,” exactly?

I do think it’s awesome that a fan of a 2-10 team is referring to a 5-7 team as “lowly,” though. Hilariously awesome.

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by Christopher Gates on Dec 8, 2010 12:17 PM CST up reply actions