BOISE, Idaho — THIS DAY IN SPORTS…November 4, 2007, 15 years ago today:
Adrian Peterson, the rookie out of Oklahoma, sets a new NFL single-game rushing record with 296 yards in the Minnesota Vikings’ 35-17 win over the San Diego Chargers. After a modest 43 yards at halftime, Peterson exploded for 253 in the second half. He averaged almost 9.9 yards a carry for the game. Peterson’s performance broke the 2003 record of 295 yards held by the Baltimore Ravens’ Jamal Lewis. With NFL relying less on running backs these days, it’s a mark that may never be broken.
Just a little over 10 months earlier, Peterson had been held to 77 yards on 20 carries by Boise State in the Broncos’ 43-42 overtime upset in the Fiesta Bowl — only 52 yards in regulation before his 25-yard touchdown run in overtime. Peterson had returned to the field for the Sooners 2½ months after breaking his collarbone in a game against Iowa State. It would be his final collegiate game, as he skipped his senior year to enter the NFL Draft, where he was selected with the seventh overall pick by Minnesota.
Peterson spent his first 10 NFL seasons with the Vikings. He led the NFL in rushing in 2008, but the best was yet to come. Peterson’s most remarkable season was 2012, when he was named NFL Most Valuable Player just a year after tearing both his ACL and MCL in a Christmas Eve game against Washington in 2011. Peterson bounced back to rush for 2,097 yards, just eight yards short of Eric Dickerson’s NFL record. He was also runner-up for the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award.
During his final five seasons, he bounced around between New Orleans, Arizona, Washington, Detroit, Tennessee and Seattle. Peterson rushed for 14,918 yards in his career. He hasn’t officially retired, but it sure looks like it’s over. His final appearance was in a one-game cameo last December with the Seahawks. Peterson rushed 11 times for 16 yards and scored the last of his 126 career NFL touchdowns. (I happened to be there for the ‘Hawks 30-23 win.)
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday.)
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