Adrian Peterson: This is 'best offense I've played in'
Adrian Peterson, who has been in the NFL since 2007, has been on some pretty potent offenses. This year, he believes this is the best he's played in and that's saying something considering Peterson played alongside Brett Favre when he had a career best 107.2 passer rating and the team went to the NFC Championship Game.
Kevin Patra of NFL.com takes note of what Peterson said here:
*After spending the past three seasons in a bland scheme under offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave, Adrian Peterson is gushing over Norv Turner's brand of football. *
"I've been watching the offense the last few games, and it's like, 'Man, they don't even need me,'" he said, per The Star Tribune. "Teams are going to have to play more honest. If they do stack the box, we'll beat them with the passing game."
*Prior to Musgrave, Peterson worked under Darrell Bevell, who is now conjuring magic with the Seahawks. Peterson praised Bevell, but noted that not many coordinators have Turner's experience. *
*The Vikings' passing weapons are as flush as they've been in years: Cordarrelle Patterson is set to explode; veteran Greg Jennings is a stellar No. 2; and Kyle Rudolph could be Turner's next great tight end project. *
*The Vikings' first-team offense has moved the ball adequately under quarterback Matt Cassel in three preseason wins sans Peterson. And after watching, the running back believes defenses will have to pick their poison when he's on the field. *
"This is going to be the best offense I've played in," Peterson said. "This is the offense I've been waiting for. We've got the pieces to facilitate moving the ball around. When Brett Favre was here, listen, when I saw those deep balls going up and guys making big plays, I was like, 'Yeah!' That makes your team very scary."
Start the countdown now – 10 days until we see Norv Turner's offense revealed at the Edward Jones Dome against the Rams.
Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune profiles four Minnesota Vikings who he believes have something to prove in the fourth and final preseason game tonight in Nashville at LP Field against the Tennessee Titans:
Kendall James, cornerback
Unlike fellow corner and seventh-round pick Jabari Price, James has not yet made an impact. He might need to show he has value beyond special teams to stick.
Christian Ponder, quarterback
The Vikings say they would like to keep three QBs, with Ponder presumably one of them. But this game will enable him to audition for life after the Vikings in 2015.
Antonio Richardson, offensive tackle
The towering left tackle showed some promise in training camp, but he has been passed by another undrafted rookie, Austin Wentworth, who played ahead of him Saturday.* *
Josh Robinson, cornerback
After sitting out the first two preseason games because of a hamstring injury, Robinson suited up Saturday. A solid performance could help him lock down the No. 3 corner job.
Tune in to KARE 11 at 7:00 p.m. tonight to catch the final preseason action and watch players on the proverbial bubble vie for the final spots on the Vikings roster.
Quick Hitters
- Mark Craig of the Star Tribune: 'Cultured' lineman Johnson took long road to Vikings
- A great one-on-one from Star Tribune's Jim Souhan with Adrian Peterson.
- As Chris Tomasson notes, look for rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to start the final preseason contest at Tennessee.
