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Now, with the Minnesota Vikings on their last-chance drive, Adrian Peterson finally listened to the voices in his ear. “The whole game the guys were telling me, ‘Be patient,’” Peterson said. “They told me to keep it front side and it will open.”
They wanted Peterson to stop looking for cutbacks, to use his speed and power to burst through the first available hole. So, with the clock ticking under three minutes in the fourth quarter, at the end of a drive on which he would touch the ball on six of seven plays, Peterson took a handoff to the right, from the Packers’ 29, and finally found an opening resembling the Great Plains.
He burst through the line and found himself sprinting down the sideline with Packers safety Atari Bigby. Peterson jabbed Bigby with a stiff-arm and dragged him toward the end zone, finally stretching the ball to the goal line.
That touchdown gave the Vikings their first victory over the Packers in four years and a tie for first place in the NFC North. That touchdown also offered the latest confirmation that the Vikings employ the best running back in football.
Peterson rushed 30 times for 192 yards Sunday, and his touchdown made the final score 28-27. On a day when the Vikings couldn’t pass, when they gave up two return touchdowns and seemed destined for another one of those deflating losses that stain their history and Brad Childress’ tenure, Peterson proved this is his team.
Sometimes Childress has been guilty of overthinking his offensive options. On Sunday, he proved to be a realist. The Vikings ran 13 offensive plays in the fourth quarter. Peterson handled the ball on 10 of them.
For better, or worse. With the Vikings trailing by three early in the fourth quarter, Peterson ran for 2, then 25, and a play later he ran for 5, setting up a third-and-1 at the Minnesota 41. With Peterson in the backfield, Chester Taylor plunged into the line and came up short.
Peterson came off the field and screamed at Childress to “go for it.” Childress claims he didn’t hear that, but he eventually relented, and Peterson took a handoff to the left and fumbled while nearing the first down. The officials gave the Packers the ball at the spot of the fumble, and Peterson left the field feeling “sick.“
The Packers kicked a field goal, and led, 27-21. The Vikings returned the kickoff to the 31. They needed to go 69 yards with a quarterback who had thrown three interceptions and a running back who had just fumbled.
Peterson described the Vikings’ running philosophy as “famine, famine, feast,” meaning that pounding into the line for short gains would eventually wear down the defense. He might as well have tied on a bib.
Peterson gained 4 yards, then 5, then Gus Frerotte hit Bobby Wade for 5 yards and a first down. Peterson went left for 2, then caught a pass for 16 and another one for 8, setting up second-and-2 at the Packers 29.
Moments later Peterson knelt in the end zone and clenched his fist. He had rushed for more yards against the Packers than any Viking, had become the first Viking ever to rush for 1,000 yards in his first two seasons, had for the second consecutive week taken over the game in the second half, feasting when his team was famished.
“I can’t compare him to anybody,” said Frerotte, who might have played with Red Grange. “I mean, the guy is just incredible. He runs hard, he plays hard, he wants to win more than anybody out there.
“On the last drive, we put it all on his back. He’s making guys miss, he’s cutting back, he’s doing everything he has to do. The guy is a great player. We were sure on his back today.“
