When you have a guy in your backfield who has gained over 10,000 yards in his career and nearly set the single-season rushing mark, it’s probably wise to give him the ball ... a lot.
Chargers vs. Vikings 2015 picks and predictions: Minnesota will be tested against San Diego
The last time Adrian Peterson faced the Chargers at home -- eight years ago -- he ran for an NFL-record 296 yards and three touchdowns.
After a lackluster season-opening loss, the Minnesota Vikings quickly learned their lesson and bounced back with a win in Week 2. Now they'll look to ride that winning formula to another victory when they host the San Diego Chargers on Sunday.
Last week against the Lions, Adrian Peterson already had more rushes (13) and yards (70) in the first quarter than he did for the entire game in Week 1 (10 rushes, 31 yards). He finished with 29 carries for 134 yards and looked like the old A.D. who rushed for more yards in his first seven NFL seasons than all but four players in league history.
Peterson has a great chance to repeat that performance this week against a Chargers defense that ranks 21st in rush yards and 27th in yards per rush allowed. Oh, and the last time Peterson faced the Chargers at home, he ran for an NFL-record 296 yards and three touchdowns on Nov. 4, 2007.
It's unlikely that San Diego will be able to stop Peterson, so in order to win this game their offense needs to be firing on all cylinders. That hasn't been much of a problem so far for the Chargers, who are averaging 26 points per game and the third-most yards in the league. Philip Rivers has been hyper-efficient, completing 81 percent of his passes at a clip of 9.5 yards per attempt, and Melvin Gordon showed signs of breaking out last week with 88 yards on 16 carries.
Based on the lack of consensus among the experts, this game is shaping up to be a nailbiter. Over at CBS Sports, the eight experts are split evenly between the two teams. The ESPN group is favoring the Vikings, however, with seven of 13 picking the home team to win.
And then things get downright confusing when you look at the picks by our NFL scribes here at SB Nation: it’s a clean sweep for Minnesota on our eight-man panel.
| Ryan Van Bibber | Stephen White | Joel Thorman | David Fucillo | Danny Kelly | Matt Ufford | PFT Commenter | OddsShark | |
| SD @ MIN | MIN | MIN | MIN | MIN | MIN | MIN | MIN | MIN |
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