Packers At Vikings: Third Quarter Game Thread

Through one half of play at the Metrodome, the Vikings are doing what they need to do, as they hold a

On the first play of the second quarter, Christian Ponder just missed Jarius Wright on what would have been a 20-yard touchdown pass, so the Vikings settled for another Blair Walsh field goal, this one from 37 yards out to make the score 13-0 in favor of the Vikings.

After the teams exchanged punts, a big return by the Packers set them up near midfield. After a tough third-down conversion by Greg Jennings and a penalty on Erin Henderson near the goal line, Aaron Rodgers eventually found Greg Jennings for a 3-yard touchdown pass to close the gap to 13-7.

Marcus Sherels then answered with a nice return of his own to put the Vikings at the 40-yard line. The Vikings put together another nice drive, including a very nice 19-yard run by Peterson to put the Vikings at first-and-goal. Ponder then connected with Wright for an 8-yard touchdown pass to make the score 20-7 in favor of the Vikings.

Peterson finished that drive with 91 yards on the ground, giving him 1,989 for the year. That's 11 yards away from 2,000 and 117 from Eric Dickerson's record.

The Packers moved the ball down the field on their final drive of the half, but a huge sack by Everson Griffen pushed them back, and Mason Crosby managed to make a 51-yard field goal to cut the lead to 20-10.

The first half has gone incredibly well for the Vikings thus far. With the Bears winning their game earlier, the only way the Vikings make the post-season is to hold on to this lead. The Metrodome crowd has played a big role in this one, forcing the Packers to burn their time outs, leaving them unable to challenge a controversial catch by Jarius Wright on a deflection on the drive that led to the second touchdown.

Minnesota has held Aaron Rodgers relatively in check thus far, as he's completed 10-of-18 passes for 89 yards and the touchdown to Jennings. Christian Ponder has played a nice game thus far as well, hitting on 9-of-15 passes for 100 yards and the scoring toss to Wright.

That's where we stand at halftime, folks. Can the Vikings hold on and punch their ticket to the post-season? Can Adrian Peterson catch Eric Dickerson? Let's hang out together and find out!