Adrian Peterson TD Run vs. Cleveland Browns

Just in case you haven't seen this spectacular run from the best RB in the NFL.

Adrian Peterson is pretty much my hero

Before the season, I said he would be the Rookie of the Year.
After the Bears game, I said he was the most explosive RB in the NFL.
That might have been selling him short.

I have watched the Vikings my entire life. There have been only two players that I get excited just when I think about what they can do on a football field... the first was Randy Moss, and now there is Adrian Peterson.

The numbers are obviously, but just a part of what makes him so special and so fun and exciting to watch. But let's start with the numbers, because then tend to be more tangible.

- He now holds the NFL single-game rushing record with 296 yards rushing in one game. He did this in his 8th NFL game.
- Everyone knew that he would be running the ball all day, and he still was able to rack up 253 yards in the 2nd half.
- Halfway through his rookie season he has 1,036 yards rushing. My simple math skills tell me that this would have him on pace for 2,072 yards for the season. The rookie record is 1,808 yards. The overall single season record is 2,105 yards.
- Peterson is the first rookie ever to have 2 200-yard rushing games in his rookie season.

More intangibly speaking, he is breathtaking to watch. The cuts, the speed, the power, the vision. It's all there.

He has the power to run the ball inside. There were concerns about his so-called upright running style in college... well, those concerns seem to be gone. He does not shy away from contact, he lowers his shoulder and goes through the defender. He is one of the strongest running backs in the League.

Then there is the speed. On one play on Sunday Shawne Merriman looked like he had him on contain to the outside, and Peterson just simply beat him to the corner. On many other plays he just outran the defense. On Sunday he had TD runs of 64 and 46 yards. He has been a big play machine. This is said about a lot of guys and it's not always necessarily true, but Peterson is truly a threat to take it all the way anytime that he touches the ball.

Best RB in the NFL? I think it might be tough to argue with that right now.

Adrian Peterson is the most explosive RB in the NFL

He may not be the best RB in the NFL yet, because he is not a great pass catcher or blocker... but I think that Adrian Peterson is already the most explosive RB in the NFL with the ball in his hands.

He single-handedly won it for the Vikings today (with a little help from Ryan Longwell). 20 carries for 224 yards and 3 TD. He also set up the game-winning FG with a long kick return. For the game, he had nearly 360 total yards on 25 touches (20 carries, 1 reception, 4 kick returns). Wow.

Through 5 games he now has 607 yards rushing, 4 TD, and 6.3 YPC. He's also got 10 receptions for 175 yards and a receiving TD. For good measure he also has 248 yards return yards. So by my calculations, through 5 career games, Adrian Peterson has 1030 total yards.

This is why I thought Adrian Peterson would be the Rookie of the Year.

NFL Week 1 Thoughts

Time to give my thoughts on what was a very, very solid mostly opening day action in the NFL.

Vikings 24, Falcons 3
You already know how I feel about this... this is how the Vikings are going to have to win football games this year. They played great defense (with a very good pass rush - 6 sacks - which was the achillies heel of the defense last year), and were able to run the football with success. Obviously I hope Chester Taylor isn't hurt, because the Vikings are going to need him, but Adrian Peterson made my Rookie of the Year pick look good, at least for one day.

Broncos 15, Bills 14
Obviously this isn't quite what I expected from Denver, given that I picked them to win the AFC West, but they did just barely get the job done. Statistically, Denver dominated the game. Cutler had over 3 times as many passing yards as Losman, and Denver had more than 50 yards rushing edge on Buffalo. However, Buffalo had the Special Teams edge... with a Roscoe Parrish TD, which kept the game in their favor until time expired. Which is all that matters.

Steelers 34, Browns 7
I expected the Steelers to dominate this game, though maybe not quite this much. Also as expected, the Browns QB woes will keep them from doing anything this year. Charlie Frye was abysmal (and replaced early in the game), and Derek Anderson wasn't much better, completing less than 50% of his passes. Brady Quinn, hope you're ready.

Packers 16, Eagles 13
Philly special teams, you have got to be kidding me. Two muffed punts... one that led directly to a Packer TD and the other that led to the game-winning FG (Mason Crosby is pretty good, by the way). Everyone knew the Packers defense was good, but they shut McNabb down, as he completed just 15 of 33 passes... whether that was because of the Packer defense or because McNabb just struggled, I didn't really see enough of the game to comment... anyone that watched a lot of it want to help me out here?

Panthers 27, Rams 13
This is definitely not what I expected. Marc Bulger had troubles, barely completing 50% of his passes, and Steven Jackson could not get it going either, fumbling twice. Meanwhile, after so many years of the Panthers being picked to have a chance to go to the Super Bowl, could they be flying under the radar? If they play defense and run the ball like they did today, then they are a very real threat to New Orleans in the South.

Patriots 38, Jets 14
It's always tough for me to watch Randy Moss play in another uniform, especially today, when it was just about vintage Randy Moss. Brady had lots of time in the pocket, and he made the most of it, completing 79% of his passes for nearly 300 yards and 3 TDs. I already can't wait for the AFC Playoffs.

Redskins 16, Dolphins 13 OT
Remember all that preseason talk about how Ronnie Brown hadn't won the job yet, and everyone just scoffed at it as just motivational tactics by Cam Cameron? Well, Brown didn't exactly light it up, with 11 carries for 32 yards (not that Jesse Chatman was any better). A great performance by the defense at home, and Miami doesn't have enough to get the win. It could be a long season in Miami. Their 2nd and 3rd leading receivers on the day were their starting RB and backup RB.

Titans 13, Jaguars 10
So much for that vaunted Jaguars running game. Maurice Jones-Drew had 7 carries for 32 yards, and Fred Taylor had 6 carries for 16 yards. Are you kidding me? 13 carries combined for those 2 guys? Garrard was statistically solid, but the offense has to run through the 2 good RBs. Otherwise we could be seeing this result a lot for the Jags.

Texans 20, Chiefs 3
It's really going to be a long season in Kansas City. The offense is just simply atrocious. A bad QB (whoever they throw out there), bad WRs, a slowing down Tony Gonzalez, and a mediocre O-Line. Larry Johnson isn't going to get much help. On the other side, I'm really excited to see what Andre Johnson will do this year now that there are other talented guys around him. 142 yards and TD for him in the opener.

Lions 36, Raiders 21
I thought the Raiders defense was good? Kitna had 2 INTs, but he also completed 75% of his passes for 289 yards and 3 TDs. And yeah, Calvin Johnson is pretty good. For the Raiders, they at least have to be encouraged by the resurgent LaMont Jordan. 159 total yards and a score for him.

Chargers 14, Bears 3
New year, same Rex Grossman. He was inconsistent, threw 1 INT (not entirely his fault) and had one play where the ball just slipped out of his hands. Vintage Rex Grossman right there. Also, I know the Chargers eventually wound up with 14 points, but that Bears defense is really, really good. No one holds LDT to 25 yards on 17 carries. That's ridiculous.

Seahawks 20, Bucs 6
Nothing real surprising here, as the Seahawks are just clearly the better team. The Bucs took a 6-0 lead after the 1st, but it was Seattle after that. Now a whole lot to say about it.

Cowboys 45, Giants 35
More than anything, the one thing that I took away from this game was... that both secondaries suck. Eli Manning and Tony Romo are good, but they shouldn't be throwing for a combined nearly 660 yards and 8 TDs. On a positive note, we did get a "Hefty Lefty" sighting, and that's always exciting. For my fantasy team's sake, I hope Brandon Jacobs' injury isn't serious.

So far in my picks against the spread this week I am 8-5-1... a nice start in my quest to finish above .500.

What stuck out most to you?

SKOL VIKINGS

I'll have more complete NFL thoughts later, but for now, let me bask in the 24-3 defensive domination of Atlanta.


19 carries, 103 yards
1 reception, 60 yards, 1 TD

1-0.

NFL Week: Playoff and Season Predictions

After giving my complete NFC Predictions and AFC Predictions, it's time for my playoff and awards predictions. Because such is the natural order of things.


AFC PLAYOFFS
(3) Denver over (6) Baltimore
(5) San Diego over (4) Pittsburgh

(1) New England over (5) San Diego
(3) Denver over (2) Indianapolis

(1) New England over (3) Denver


NFC PLAYOFFS
(3) Philadelphia over (6) Minnesota
(4) St. Louis over (5) Seattle

(1) New Orleans over (4) St. Louis
(3) Philadelphia over (2) Chicago

(1) New Orleans over (3) Philadelphia


SUPER BOWL
New England over New Orleans

Looking things over, I think that, like last year, there are probably at least 3-4 teams in the AFC better (or at least on par) with the best team in the NFC. I think New Orleans is probably the best team in the NFC right now, but I think New England, Indianapolis, Denver, and San Diego are probably more complete teams than them.

MVP: Tom Brady - Finally has some offensive weapons which will help with his numbers. The fact that he'll be playing on the preseason Super Bowl favorite helps too.

Rookie of the Year: Adrian Peterson - Already been over this!

Coach of the Year: Mike Tomlin - I think he'll do very well as a head coach, making Pittsburgh a surprise team in the AFC.


One final note of housecleaning... I am bringing back my picks against the spread this year (those will all come tomorrow), but since I want to make a pick on the Thursday game, I'll do it here. I am taking Indianapolis -6 in this ballgame. It should be extremely entertaining, but I see the Colts winning by about 10 on their home turf.

NFL Week: Why the Vikings will be better than people think

All of this week I will be focusing on the NFL and giving my previews and picks, since the season starts Thursday (with what should be a fantastic game).

But first, let me talk about my favorite team, the Minnesota Vikings, and why I think they will be a lot better than anyone expects. As in, competing for a Wildcard spot good.

First, the defense. It should be really good, and that starts everything. Last year it was historically good against the run, and mediocre against the pass for a couple of reasons. One, they had no pass rush. The D-Line simply did not get pressure on the QB. This year, Ray Edwards will be starting right away, and he has the potential for double-digit sacks. He's explosive, fast, and quick off the edge. Also contributing on the Line is Brian Robison and Erasmus James, both of which were not here last year (Robison is a rookie, James was hurt). Leslie Frazier also really likes to blitz, which will add pressure because the LBs are pretty quick.

Another problem was Fred Smoot, who is now departed. He was really bad last year. Cedric Griffin will be starting, and rookie Marcus McCauley is looking really good as a nickelback. I think they will be better at getting to the passer, which could turn this in a top 5-10 defense in the NFL.

Offensively, there are concerns, but there is talent.

Things all start with the running game, which is good. The O-Line should be improved with a year to gel... the McKinnie-Hutchinson-Birk part of the Line could be the best LT-LG-C combo in the League, at least on paper. From the RB standpoint, there is a lot of talent. Chester Taylor had over 1200 yards last year (as well as being dependable receiver), and he won't even be the most talented RB in Minnesota. That would be Adrian Peterson, my pick for the Rookie of the Year.

That just means that QB Tarvaris Jackson needs to keep defenses honest, and I really think he can do that. He's very unproven, which is why the Vikings are being rated so low (and it's hard to argue with people who say he is raw), but he has improved immensely. It was only preseason, but he was making good, quick reads. He has a strong arm, and has the mobility to make plays with his feet. There will definitely be ups-and-downs (in no small part because the WR corps is inexperienced and unproven), but I love his talent.

With the defense and running game, Tarvaris Jackson needs only to be average to make this a competitive football team. I really think he can do that. I think the Vikings will be a very tough team to play, and will be in the hunt for the Wilcard.

Am I delusional? Do I have a reason to be so optimistic? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Vikings' chances this season.

The Adrian Peterson Run

You already know why I think Adrian Peterson will be the NFL Rookie of the Year... but if you need more convincing, or if you just want to see the reason why Vikings' fans are so very excited about this guy, watch this video (if you haven't already):



W-O-W! Watching that gives me goosebumps.

NFL Prediction: Adrian Peterson will be the Rookie of the Year

I don't know how this matches up to some other bold predictions I've made, and it may just be blatant homerism, but I'm putting in my prediction right now that Adrian Peterson will be the NFL Rookie of the Year as long as he stays healthy.

I know, he is in a running back by committee system along with Chester Taylor. But just watch this play and tell me who you think will be getting more carries in this offense. Chester Taylor does a lot of things well, but Adrian Peterson is just an amazing runner. He's fast, he's quick, he's powerful... he's got more talent than most running backs in the NFL have. It's only preseason, but Peterson had carries for 70 yards against the Jets, and looked VERY impressive doing it.

But still, both guys will get carries. I understand that. But I do think that as the Vikings get closer to the goal line, Peterson will start to get more carries and more TDs. He's just got a nose for the endzone, and he has the power to get in there. He scored 41 touchdowns in college. Also, as the year goes on, I think Peterson will start to get more and more carries, as his talent will just be too difficult to keep off the field.

There is also some concern about his health, as he was bothered by some injuries in college. Obviously this is a concern, but I think the fact that he won't have to play every down right away will help. While the presence of Chester Taylor will hurt him a little in terms of overall numbers, it will help him stay fresh.

So what do you think? Can Adrian Peterson be the Rookie of the Year, or is this just wishful thinking on my part?

Football is back!

Normally, I must admit that I don't really care about the preseason. A lot of it is basically glorified scrimmages, and that's not all that exciting.

However, this year, for some reason, I was feeling differently. I was really pumped up to finally see the Vikings in action again, and even watched some other preseason action as well, which I normally do not do.

I think part of this was about finally seeing Tarvaris Jackson playing again. (warning: Vikings talk ahead). Jackson looked poised, accurate, and they moved the ball with the first-team offense. They didn't put a lot of points on the board, but that doesn't really worry me too much since it was the first preseason game.

Also, I was excited to get my first look at Adrian Peterson in a Vikings uniform. He looked a little tentative early, but seemed to get more and more comfortable. Really, he looked like he was about one broken tackle away from taking it the distance on every play. That is one strong dude.

How about you? Are you watching any of the preseason games?