Adrian Peterson

rian at WR can change a game in minutes and I don’t need to really go in depth on how quickly Adrian Peterson can change a game. If those guys weren't enough, the Vikings drafted Percy Harvin from Florida who had a wildly successful collegiate career as an explosive game changer. The Vikings defense isn't without its talent with Jared Allen, Pat Williams, Kevin Williams, EJ Henderson, and Chad Greenway anchoring a defense that most teams don't even bother trying to run against.

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 The end zone dance should be their highlight.  

No questions should be asked of Adrian Peterson, he's the quintessential Vikings player if we are focused on winning a championship.  He will ignite our team by his humble legs and polite footwork.  He won't crush opponents unless you are trying to crush him and he'll dodge, deke, and discomfort by making you looking stupid, when possible.  We don't ask for a team of winners all the time but when the game is on the line we expect there to be a decision made that keeps the team churning.  

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e Tice regime) was just as productive as Tarvaris Jackson throwing to Bernard Berrian and giving to Adrian Peterson.  Essentially, what I'm trying to say is that Childress has come nowhere near delivering the "kick-ass" offense he promised a few seasons ago.  Sure, the defense has been incredible, but Chilly lucked out in that regard (and was likely helped by the presence of Mike Tomlin, now Head Coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers), as the Wilfs had just doled out the money to Pat Williams, Antoine Winfield, and Darren Sharper, while Kevin Williams was becoming a major inside force.

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nse, the Vikings looked more than decent against a difficult-to-decipher Philly defense and got two Adrian Peterson runs for scores.

At the half, then, with the Vikings trailing 16-14, I really thought that our Purple crew could pull it out.  The Eagles were doing absolutely nothing on offense, while

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eason no matter who is on the D-line) to keep the defense from tiring out, I think that Jackson and Adrian Peterson will thwart Philly's defense and score more than is expected of them.

Go Pu

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game than the score indicated.

Tarvaris Jackson was 16/26 with 239 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT.  Adrian Peterson rushed for 103 yards on 21 carries.  Both Bobby Wade (98 yds) and Bernard Berrian (81 yards) turned in impressive performances.  Jackson's INT was also the only Vikings turnover lost in the contest.

Continue reading "Vikings 20, Giants 19: Getting the Job Done"

upset he was by that — he got a personal foul for tackling the interceptor out of bounds.)

Adrian Peterson had a big play that gave the Vikes an early 10-0 lead, breaking through for a 67-yard TD run. Otherwise he was pretty well held in check, and fumbled once. He was lucky — teammate Jim Kleinsasser recovered the ball.

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I thought I would write this blurb while watching the Purple in a dogfight with the G-Men.  I am eagerly awaiting some confirmation that the AZ win in all facets of the game wasn't just a abor

Continue reading "Thoughts while watching with apprehension"

Now that the horrific game against the Falcons is behind us, let's reflect.  Score wise it wasn't horrific, however the 5 fumbles wasn't so nice to watch.  When a true fan such as myself and all of you other Purple lovers out there watch a game that had our offense penetrating DEEP into Atlanta's territory, then continually turning over the ball.  Not only that, but doing that at home!!  I do not live in Mn and was fortunate enough to have my local TV station carry the game and I thought the fans at "The Dome" were very gracious with how long they took to "booo" the Purple.  Also, it is very rare that I think Booing is warranted from a fan to their team.  However, it is obvious that in the ONE game that the Vikes needed to come out fired up for, they came out FLATTER than a warm beer!  It was also obvious, aside from CB Griffin and Jared Allen, that the team was flat and not really caring about the fan's concern with performance at home. 

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into a blowout, as every aspect of the game was clicking:

The running game was working well until Adrian Peterson kept fumbling away possessions (he finished with 76 yards), but Tarvaris Jackson also added 76 yards on the ground by himself and looked as exciting as the prime years of Daunte Culpepper.  What impressed me the most about Jackson's scrambling, though, is that he wasn't just running around like a chicken with his head cut off...instead, he ran when he saw big yardage and scrambled to avoid pressure and deliver an on-target pass when needed.

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star talent (Michael Turner, Matt Ryan, Roddy White) than the Vikings, so, again, a big effort from Adrian Peterson will likely be the key to victory.

However, I think the key matchup in the contest will be the Vikings' ability to put pressure on young Atlanta QB Matt Ryan (pictured above).  If the D-Line can hurry Ryan, their offense will get out of sync and become one-dimensional.  If he is allowed to stand in the pocket and deliver clean passes, though, there is a good chance that White or Michael Jenkins will haul them in against a Purple secondary that needs help up front to succeed.

Continue reading "Vikings/Falcons Preview: An Even Line"

e had never seen from him until this point) to give the Vikings a lead, after which point they rode Adrian Peterson (165 yards) for the rest of the game.  Throw in the tremendous pressure that the defense put on Kurt Warner and the Arizona receivers, and a blowout was almost inevitable.

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Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor shredded the Cardinals’ run defense, with Peterson gaining 165 yards on 28 carries and Taylor 66 yards on 10 rushes. Taylor also scored on a pass.

The Vikings’ Bernard Berrian had a huge day, with a touchdown on a punt return and a second on a 41-yard pass from Jackson. Those were the first two scores in the game.

Continue reading "Vikings pillage Arizona, 35-14"

ever, before we anoint Jackson as the newest old savior, consider the fact that he pretty much rode Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor for the entire second half.  Against the Lions that was acceptable, as the Vikes were not afraid in the least of Detroit's offense (in fact, Detroit having the ball played right into MN's hands).  So, even hanging on to a slim lead, the Vikes were content to pound the line and not try anything too crazy.

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Jackson was eight of 10 for 105 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.

Adrian Peterson had another good day, rushing 23 times for 103 yards.

But you have to give one of the two game balls to the defense. (Jackson gets the other.) The Vikings had four sacks and allowed only 267 yards, though they were unable to get a takeaway. (Culpepper fumbled twice, but the Lions recovered both.)

Continue reading "Vikes survive, beat Lions"

Coming into Sunday night's nationally televised contest against the Bears, the Vikes were a team (and a fan base) that expected a victory.  Remarkably (if you know anything about the Vikes in pressure situations!), that is exactly what transpired, with an exclamation mark!  Why did the Vikings have no excuse not to win this game?  A quick recent-history lesson:

Continue reading "Vikings 34, Bears 14: Doing What Needed To Be Done"

We all know or should know what is being referenced by "Taylor Power".  Meaning the importance of Chester Taylor.  He has been an unbelievable relief for A.P. when it seems

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It was the epitome of winning ugly.

Minnesota barely gained 200 yards. Adrian Peterson had just 80 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries -- modest numbers for him.

But the Vikes played a Jaguars team that was in the holiday spirit. They gave up four sacks, committed eight penalties.

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nesota took a big step with today's victory.

The Vikings play the Bears next Sunday night.

Adrian Peterson had an OK day, rushing 17 times for 80 yards and a touchdown.

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He was sacked only once.

This time Adrian Peterson wasn't enough. He gained 85 yards, almost half of the team's measly total of 210 yards.

The Bucs were better in the second half. The Vikings offense did nothing, and the Bucs tied on the opening drive after the half. They were the better team, especially after the break.

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a tight, defensive-type struggle.  The Bucs can stop the run, which doesn't bode well for the Adrian Peterson-led Vikings, while the Vikes can do the same, neutralizing the Bucs' main threats as well.

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of the season:

-First, let's give credit where credit is due...this was one of those games where Adrian Peterson took the team completely on his shoulders.  Much like LaDainian Tomlinson did for the Chargers in recent years, Peterson absolutely dominated this game when it really counted...in the second half.  However, I would caution Vikings fans not to get too over-hyped about their 5-4 and tie-for-first-place team.  Peterson will NOT be able to shoulder that much of a workload every game (whether he wants to or not, the holes will not always be there, especially when defenders start keying on him again), and thus other teammates will have to step up and make big plays (something that is usually severely lacking in MN).  I am confident in saying this because the exact same scenario happened last year.  After A.D. single-handedly beat the Chargers (when he set the single-game rushing record) and Bears (220 some yards and 3 scores), he was by and large shut down for the rest of the season (I remember the game in San Francisco where he was held to something like 9 total yards on 15 or so carries...ouch).  So, as good as it is to be tied for first in the NFC North, the Vikes have an awful lot of proving themselves to do in the remaining regular-season weeks.

Continue reading "Vikings 28, Packers 27...A Few Thoughts"

ked grim for a while, but the Vikings overcame some sloppy play to beat the Packers at home, 28-27. Adrian Peterson scored on a 29-yard run to give Minnesota the lead.

Mason Crosby's 52-yard field goal went wide right, giving the Vikes the win. But it seemed almost like three games.

Continue reading "Vikes ride Peterson to victory over Packers"

on Manning in the process.

Once again you can cite some really good things and some awful ones.

Adrian Peterson gained 139 yards, Gus Frerotte threw three touchdown passes and the defense got two interceptions, a fumble recovery and five sacks.

Continue reading "Vikes eke out win against Texans, 28-21"

ichael Bennett, Marcus Robinson, Kelly Campbell, and Nate Burleson.  In 2008, the Vikings have Adrian Peterson and a similar cast of average players that just need the right coach and the

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pired at Soldier Field:

The game actually started out on a very positive note for the Vikings, as Adrian Peterson capped off their first drive of the game with a touchdown lunge at the goal line.  Of course, the Bears (helped by the inability of the Vikings' kickoff team to execute a successful squib kick to keep the ball away from Devin Hester, thus gaining them tremendous field position) also scored on their first possession to knot the score at 7-7.

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There's been nothing special about the punt and kickoff teams.

Adrian Peterson rushed for more than 100 yards and scored two touchdowns, but it wasn't nearly enough. Gus Frerotte threw for 298 yards and a pair of scores, but those four picks were killers.

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zone:

From what I have seen, the Vikings (like most teams in the NFL) rely heavily on runs (from Adrian Peterson and sometimes Chester Taylor) and short passes to set up the occasional deep strike.  Essentially, it is a West Coast offense.  When run to perfection, this type of offenses does two things: 1. It softens up the defense line by pounding the ball at them time and time again; and 2. Because of that pounding, the line is not strong enough to put pressure on the QB, who is then free to complete short passes (under ten yards) and look for the occasional man coverage on the outside to take a deep shot.  However, the Vikings lack one key component of that system: the ability to complete short passes.  Leaving Bernard Berrian out of the equation for the moment, the Vikings' other receivers (Bobby Wade, Aundrae Allison, and Robert Ferguson) are just not good enough to consistently get open and make the play required of them.  Allison is too inexperienced and penalty-prone, while Fergie and Wade are too old).  So, what ends up happening is that opposing defenses even leave the short-yardage receivers in loose coverage, instead choosing to stop-up Peterson, a strategy that has been quite successful in rendering the Purple impotent with the ball.  The end result is Peterson getting stuffed, and the receivers dropping enough passes (or just plain not getting open) to set up third and long situations, which a West Coast offense is not equipped to convert, as the defense can finally play a little looser knowing that a pass is almost surely coming.

Continue reading "Fixing The Vikings Offense"

know how false that assumption is.  After the Berrian long score, the Vikings punted, fumbled (Adrian Peterson) in Lions territory, and had a Ryan Longwell field goal blocked after an offensive penalty made the kick more difficult than it needed to be.  So, after one more drive ending with Chris Kluwe, the Vikings got the ball with 4:41 remaining in the game, down by a 10-9 score.  The Vikings moved to nearly midfield with ease, but then a screen pass to Peterson (5-yard loss) and a false start penalty set up a 2nd-and-20 down and distance situation.  On the next play, Frerotte uncorked a deep bomb (in the direction of Berrian, if I'm not mistaken), and while the catch wasn't made, pass-interference was called on the Lions' defender, putting the ball at the Lions' 26 yard line.  After reviewing the replay, it was clear that there was minimal (if any) actual interference on the play, so the Vikings essentially caught a game-winning break, as a few plays later Longwell knocked the game-winning kick through the uprights.

Continue reading "Despite Safety, Win Over Lions Is Anything But"

Gus Frerotte had a good game, with nearly 300 yards passing. Adrian Peterson rushed for more than 100 yards.

But Peterson fumbled twice; Frerotte tossed an interception; and the Lions blocked a field goal.

Continue reading "Vikings better than lucky than good, part 2"

They were unlucky, with a strange call on an apparent Adrian Peterson fumble and a missed facemask penalty.

The biggest play of the game came on the Vikes' game-tying drive in the fourth quarter. Gus Frerotte managed to throw a great pass to Bernard Berrian to the New Orleans 27. Frerotte was hit so hard he had to leave the game, but he came back to toss a TD pass to Berrian on an all-out blitz on a third and 16. That tied the game at 27.

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That’s not going to happen considering that the Vikes got Allen and that hotshot running back Adrian Peterson might be even better this year.

But we all know what the Viking problems have been. Weak passing offense. Erratic play at quarterback. Poor pass defense. Not much of a pass rush.

Continue reading "Vikings in the Super Bowl? Hmm."