Not one of the Vikings cornerbacks had an interception heading into the ninth game of the season against the Oakland Raiders.
It was Minnesota's 37-year-old Terence Newman who had two on Sunday.
Newman's second pick of the game sealed the Vikings 30-14 victory, when he intercepted quarterback Derek Carr's pass in the end zone with 3:43 remaining in the fourth quarter.
"I had Andre Holmes, who was a favorable matchup for them," Newman said. "Him being 6-foot-4, and me being 5-foot-10.
I got a good look at it, and when I turned I just saw the ball in the air, and tried to box him out. It just so happened that I tipped it up and pulled it down."
The oldest player on the Vikings roster made the unselfish play of kneeling the ball down, and not attempting to run the ball out of the endzone.
Instead it was Adrian Peterson who ran the ball for an 80-yard touchdown the following snap and the cornerback said he'd rather it be that way.
"The old man has still got it," linebacker Anthony Barr said. "He's still got some tricks up his sleeve and he pulled those out for us today."
Newman deflected five passes in the game, and saw snaps guarding the Raiders 21-year-old rookie wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer previously coached Newman with the Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals and credited the veteran for leading his young secondary.
"He's a great competitor," Zimmer said. "He's a very good football player, but he's an even better person. He helps a lot of young guys, he does a great job with the secondary."
His first interception gave the Vikings an early two-possession lead in the game. With just under four minutes left in the first quarter, Newman jumped Cooper's route on a play action pass.
"The quarterback just looked that way," Newman said. "I know he has a lot of trust in Amari, so I just tried to jump the route, and it paid off."
His interception set the Vikings up for a drive on the Oakland 41-yard-line that ended in a Blair Walsh field goal to put the Vikings ahead 10-0.
In his 13th season in the NFL, Newman's pair of interceptions were the 38th and 39th of his career.
He now sits in sole possession of third on the list of the league's active interception leaders.
Charles Woodson, who suited up for Oakland Sunday, is first on that list (65) at 39 years old. The longtime corner made the switch to the safety position a few years back.
"I think we had two of the most ageless defensive backs out on the field today," said Vikings safety Harrison Smith. "So being able to play with Terence, I'm very lucky to be a guy that's around him, and gets to watch him."
Newman started the game this week after being sidelined with a concussion in Minnesota's 21-18 overtime victory over the St. Louis Rams.
He was inadvertently kicked in the facemask by Rams RB Todd Gurley, but cleared the NFL's concussion protocol this week prior to the game.
"Yeah we're old, but we still love the game," Newman said. "As long as we still love the game and our bodies are able to play we'll be out here. I'm trying to catch him."
