San Diego 17, Minnesota 35

1 2 3 4 T
SDG (4-4) 7 7 0 3 17
MIN (3-5) 7 0 14 14 35

Final

1:00 PM ET
November 4, 2007

Eight games into career, Peterson owns single-game rushing record

Scouts Buzz
Adrian Peterson was simply spectacular. He ran with extreme conviction, burst and elusiveness, gashing an excellent San Diego run defense that consistently brought extra defenders down near the line of scrimmage. And the first tackler rarely brought Peterson to the ground. His performance opened up the 40-yard touchdown pass from Brooks Bollinger to Sidney Rice that gave Minnesota a lead it would never relinquish. The Vikings’ offensive line, especially the left side, was very impressive, considering that Minnesota’s passing game is anemic and every last person in the stadium knew Peterson would be getting the ball over and over again. It didn’t matter, though. Peterson still had a record-setting day.
-- Matt Williamson, Scouts Inc.

· Complete Week 9 Scouts Buzz
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Team Stat Comparison
 
1st Downs1426
3rd down efficiency
4-166-13
4th down efficiency
0-11-1
Total Yards229528
Passing187150
Comp-Att
19-4213-22
Yards per pass
4.56.8
Rushing42378
Rushing Attempts
2043
Yards per rush
2.18.8
Penalties10-6711-81
Turnovers22
Fumbles lost
12
Interceptions thrown
10
Possession25:5334:07
Air/Ground Leaders
San Diego Passing
 C/ATTYDSTDINT
Rivers19/4219701
Minnesota Passing
 C/ATTYDSTDINT
Bollinger7/109510
Jackson6/126300
San Diego Rushing
 CARYDSTDLG
Tomlinson1640111
Rivers3505
Minnesota Rushing
 CARYDSTDLG
Peterson30296364
Taylor960134
San Diego Receiving
 RECYDSTDLG
Chambers559019
Naanee239022
Minnesota Receiving
 RECYDSTDLG
Rice466140
Ferguson324011
San Diego Fumbles
 FUMLOSTREC
Rivers310
McCree001
Minnesota Fumbles
 FUMLOSTREC
Peterson110
Taylor110
Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTERSDGMIN
TD05:44Ladainian Tomlinson 1 Yd Run (Nate Kaeding Kick) 70
TD02:49Adrian Peterson 1 Yd Run (Ryan Longwell Kick) 77
SECOND QUARTERSDGMIN
TD00:00Antonio Cromartie 109 Yd Return Of Attempted Field Goal (Nate Kaeding Kick) 147
THIRD QUARTERSDGMIN
TD12:44Adrian Peterson 64 Yd Run (Ryan Longwell Kick) 1414
TD03:07Sidney Rice 40 Yd Pass From Brooks Bollinger (Ryan Longwell Kick) 1421
FOURTH QUARTERSDGMIN
FG14:09Nate Kaeding 36 Yd 1721
TD07:44Adrian Peterson 46 Yd Run (Ryan Longwell Kick) 1728
TD04:28Chester Taylor 2 Yd Run (Ryan Longwell Kick) 1735

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Minutes after Adrian Peterson lost a fourth-quarter fumble at the San Diego 20-yard line, the ball was back in his hands.

He rumbled around right end, paused to set up his blocks, and sprinted 46 yards up the sideline for Minnesota's game-clinching touchdown.

This rookie doesn't make many mistakes. He simply sets a lot of records.

Purple And Pure Gold
Adrian Peterson
The sure-fire candidate for NFL Rookie of the Year now must be considered an MVP threat. In the eighth game of his pro career, Adrian Peterson broke the NFL single-game rushing record. The top five rushing games in league history:
Yds.

Player Opp. Carries TDs
296 Peterson, MIN S.D. 30 3
295 Lewis, BAL CLE

30 2
278 Dillon, CIN DEN 22 2
275 Payton, CHI MIN 40 1
273 Simpson, BUF DET 29 2

Racing to the NFL's single-game rushing record of 296 yards at the midpoint of his first pro season, Peterson carried the Vikings to a 35-17 victory over the Chargers on Sunday.

He didn't realize the significance of his performance until his benign 3-yard carry took the clock under 60 seconds and sent him past Jamal Lewis' 295-yard performance against Cleveland in 2003 for the best game a running back has ever had in this league.

"Oh, no. I was out playing ball," Peterson said. "I wasn't thinking about the record at all."

There are more for him to ponder.

• On 30 carries, Peterson topped 200 yards rushing for the second time in one season, a feat no other rookie has accomplished.

• Peterson scored two of his three touchdowns and gained 253 yards in the second half, helping the Vikings rally from a 14-7 deficit. They trailed at the half after Antonio Cromartie plucked a missed field goal out of the air and returned it 109 yards for a touchdown, the longest play in NFL history.

• Peterson reached 1,036 yards rushing this season, a pace that would smash Eric Dickerson's rookie record of 1,808 yards set in 1983. Dickerson's all-time record of 2,105 yards in 1984 is also in reach.

"I set my bar high, because I know anything is possible when you continue to work hard," Peterson said.

Minnesota (3-5) pressured Philip Rivers into one of the worst games of his career and made sure LaDainian Tomlinson didn't come close to matching Peterson's performance.

Tomlinson rushed 16 times for 40 yards, and Rivers went 19-for-42 for 197 yards with one interception. He lost one of his three fumbles, two of which were dropped snaps.

"It's not defense or offense. It's all of us," Rivers said. "Obviously we were given plenty of opportunities, but we didn't do enough."

San Diego (4-4) lost a November game for the first time since 2003 and reverted to the shaky play on both sides of the ball that led to a 1-3 start. The defense that ranked seventh in the league against the run was thoroughly beaten.

"I have been in this league too long to use the word embarrassed," coach Norv Turner said.

Quarterback Tarvaris Jackson got hurt again, and backup Brooks Bollinger was much better in the second half. That included a 40-yard touchdown pass to Sidney Rice that put the Vikings in front 21-14.

But it's easy to look good handing off to Peterson.

"I felt like I was back at Wisconsin," said Bollinger, who handed off to Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne plenty of times as a freshman in 1999.

After Peterson's fumble, the Chargers recovered with 10 minutes left and trailed only 21-17. Minnesota's defense, which came into the game allowing the most yards passing in the league, forced another three-and-out and San Diego's eighth punt of the afternoon.

Mewelde Moore returned it 42 yards, and Peterson needed only one play to put the game away and again show off his unique blend of power, speed and instinct.

Rivers threw an interception, Chester Taylor followed with a short touchdown run, and the Vikings suddenly led by 18 -- reaching 35 points for the first time in 24 games under coach Brad Childress.

"That's the way I like to play football," Childress said. "I do have a healthy respect for being able to run it and take somebody's will from them."

The Vikings took possession at their 20 with 2:24 remaining in the first half with all three timeouts, but they mismanaged the clock again and let it move under 40 seconds when Jackson ran from the pocket. He was knocked out of the game with an apparent neck injury during the tackle.

Bollinger came in and moved them close enough for Ryan Longwell to try a 57-yard field goal. It was on line, but just short -- leaving Cromartie room to leap and catch the ball without stepping out.

Cromartie ran it back all the way, without being touched, and in the process gained 18 more yards than his team did on offense in the entire half. Childress was so mad he chucked his headset off, but that was a short rant.

Rivers, on the other hand, spent most of the game complaining to the officials. The Chargers continually cost themselves field position with ill-timed penalties and made plenty of mistakes on both sides of the ball.

"That's part of the game," Rivers said, downplaying his emotions. "I was frustrated the way we were playing. We just didn't make enough plays to win, and that's what every game is."

Game notes
Peterson's 315 total yards were more than nine of the 17 other teams who played in the same time slot Sunday: Kansas City (234), San Diego (229), Denver (303), San Francisco (251), Atlanta (286), Arizona (195), Cincinnati (299), Carolina (199) and Tennessee (236). ... Tomlinson, in just his seventh NFL season, passed Jim Brown for fourth place on the NFL's list for rushing touchdowns with 107. Emmitt Smith, Marcus Allen and Walter Payton are the top three.


NFL Scores

Sunday, November 4th 2007
San Francisco 16 Final
Atlanta 20
Cincinnati 21 Final
Buffalo 33
Denver 7 Final
Detroit 44
Carolina 7 Final
Tennessee 20
Green Bay 33 Final
Kansas City 22
San Diego 17 Final
Minnesota 35
Jacksonville 24 Final
New Orleans 41
Washington 23 Final
NY Jets 20 OT
Arizona 10 Final
Tampa Bay 17
Seattle 30 Final
Cleveland 33 OT
New England 24 Final
Indianapolis 20
Houston 24 Final
Oakland 17
Dallas 38 Final
Philadelphia 17
Monday, November 5th 2007
Baltimore 7 Final
Pittsburgh 38