AP runs for 296 yards! San Diego Chargers vs. Minnesota Vikings FULL GAME | NFL 2007 Season Week 9
Welcome back inside here at H. Humphrey Metrodome where Dan, there is never a need for a weather forecast. No, it’s uh actually kind of a nice day outside for early November here in Minneapolis. But uh no, this game is indoors. The weather is perfect and immediately the pressure is going to fall on the defense of the Vikings. Chargers have won the toss. They will receive. That’s Darren Sprouls returning kicks in a 25 yd per attempt average. And this is Sprouls from the one to the 20 and a big hole up the middle. 30 40 and tracked down at the 45 yd line by Vinnie Churchu. A big return to get Philip Rivers and the Chargers offense some terrific field position. There’s the fourth year quarterback. Three touchdown passes in the win over Houston last week. 10 on the year completing 65% of his passes. The Chargers O line still missing center Nick Hardwick out with a foot injury. Veteran Cory Whitrow again replaces him. Newly acquired Chris Chambers at wide receiver and last year’s MVP Leanian Tomlinson at running back. LT the lone back behind Rivers as the Chargers begin first down from their own 45. This is Tomlinson out of the back field. Out of bounds just as he crosses midfield and pushed out by Chad Greenway. A look now at the Minnesota 4-3 defense. Two big guys named Williams in the middle. Team sack leader Keni Udza at defensive end. The linebackers Ben Lever and Chad Greenway flank EJ Henderson. The Vikings leading tackler and cornerback Antoine Winfield out today. The rookie out of Fresno State, Marcus McCauley starts in his place. pick up of seven on that first play. Second and three. And Greg, they will miss Winfield’s tackling. He might be the best tackling corner in the league and they will miss him greatly today. [Applause] Reverse throws to the near side and that’s incomplete intended for Chris Chambers. It’ll be third and three. Greg, I want to go back to that opening kickoff. I don’t know where this drive will end up for San Diego, but a lot of credit goes to Ryan Longwell, the kicker. He forced Sprouls back into the middle. If Sprouls would have broken to the sideline, that would have been a touchdown. Ryan Longwell, uh, you don’t give kickers props very often, but he saved a touchdown on the opening kickoff. Especially, you don’t give kickers props very often. Well, you know what? That’s I just want to have credibility. I’ll give it to them when they deserve it. Third and three. LT bounces to the outside, shoots back inside and comes up short. Cedric Griffin up from the quarterback position, made the stop and kept LT short of the first down. Boy, when LT busted it to the outside, I thought this was going to be a first down for sure, but look at that support. And that is a sensational tackle by Cedric Griffith. Chad Greenway was closing in, but wow, you don’t see one-on-one tackles like that on Tomlinson very often. Meldy Moore deep for the kick from Mike Ciphers. High kick. Moore calls for the fair catch and makes the catch at the seven yd line. So, the Minnesota Vikings will go on offense and there’s the Viking quarterback Tvaris Jackson in his second year out of Alabama State. two touchdown passes, five interceptions, and trying to find a groove on offense. And that index finger will all be watching that. The offensive line for the Vikings is big and talented and sturdy, led by Pro Bowl left guard Steve Hutchinson. And among the backs and receivers is the outstanding rookie running back out of Oklahoma, Adrien Peterson. He is, in a word, delightful to watch. Yes, he is fun to talk to as well, don’t you think? Good catch. First down from the seven. That’s Peterson behind Jackson. Jackson will throw throws and that’s complete across the 15 to about the 18 yd line with Robert Ferguson making the catch. A look at the San Diego defense. The Chargers 34 gets big Jamal Williams back at nose tackle. Double arthoscopic knee surgery a couple of weeks ago. He’s back today. They’re missing linebacker Shawn Phillips with a groin injury today, but Pro Bowler Shawn Marman with his five and a half sacks works on the outside. In the secondary, veteran quarterback Quinton Jammer’s been bothered by a hamstring, but he is good to go today. First down from the 19. And here’s Adrien Peterson’s first carry of the day. Right side trying to get across the 20 and he does, but just barely. Well, I thought Brad Childress was really smart on the first play of the game calling a pass play. He has to demonstrate that Jackson can throw to set this up to set up Peterson. And this again looked like it was going to be a much bigger play than it was. And again, we see corners coming up and really making good plays. That time it was Quenton Jammer. There is Brad Children in his second year. He calls the plays. But they must demonstrate to this San Diego defense that Jackson can throw or there’ll be eight people in the box all game long. Peterson on the move and now to the top of your screen. Short drop and the quick slant almost intercepted. Almost picked off by Marlon McCree. Wow. McCree looked like he was the receiver. Talk about establishing inside position as the defender. Marlon McCree is completely inside the receiver. Look at that. He looks like the offensive player trying to force that ball into Cydney Rice and McCree had it in his hands and just couldn’t hold it. That was a turnover waiting to happen. So now Jackson will work out of the shotgun on third and eight and Chester Taylor is in the back field with him. [Applause] Jackson throws far side and that is complete. And that’s Tinkler. And Taylor about a yard short of a first down. Boy, Quenton Jammer again coming up with a good support and a good tackle. Man, the uh quarterbacks in this game so far have come to play. [Applause] Boy, that’s a that is really a fine tackle. Remember Jammer got up on the run by Peterson before? Yep. So now Sprouls back to take in the kick from Chris Cluey. Sprouls does double duty for the Chargers returning kickoffs and punts. And this one is short, just barely across midfield. Let’s see where it went out of bounds. This is going to be some terrific field position once again for the San Diego Chargers. [Music] There is the San Diego head coach Norf Turner. Also had head coaching stints in Oakland and Washington. His first with the Chargers. San Diego starting from their own 47. They started from their 45 last possession. This is LT. And LT squeezes through, goes to midfield. And let’s go back to that punt by Chris. Well, I think Antonio Cromardy, who’s lined up right here on the outside, watch him come in. I think he gets a right hand on the ball. You could hear a double thud. I actually think he got a hand on the ball and Cro Marty came up and he was applauding and clapping. This guy had a monster game last week, Greg. And that explains a 25 yd kick by Clue, a guy who averages almost 45 a kick. Second and six. River throws far side. This is Leadoo Nan. And Naan all the way inside the 30 yd line. The rookie out of Boise State goes 22 yds. And it’s a first down for San Diego. And I don’t know if it’s because LT isn’t in there or whatever. LT’s faking it to the other side. They lose track of Nan. The defense so keyed into LT when he blocked on the other side of the formation, he took a couple guys with him. Really opened up the left side of the field. He’s having a laugh with James Loftton, the wide receiver coach. Na fifth round draft pick out of Boise State. First down now, Chargers at the Minnesota 28 or 29. What a great name, too. Throwing far side. And that is complete. That’s Brandon Manuuna, the tight end. He’s inside the 25 to the 22. There’s a guy who’s a bit of a load in tackle. Manalyuna and pronounced. He’s Well, he’s closer to 300 than he is to 275. Let’s put it that way. When a defensive back or a linebacker sees him with a football, that’s that’s an oh no moment. That’s one of those oh why me? Six-yd pickup makes it second and four. And we get whistled and a false start by the Chargers. False start offense number 85. 5 yd penalty. It’s still second down. Antonio Gates, the tight end. Even Pro Bowlers can make a mistake every now and then. The crowd noise really wasn’t that loud. I’ve been in this building when it’s a whole lot louder. This I think right now this crowd’s kind of giving the Chargers a bit of a break. Let’s see if that false start gets them going here a little bit. The backup puts San Diego at second and nine as we come up on 9 minutes to play of a scoreless first quarter so far. Quick pass to the outside. River to Chamber. Chambers down the sideline and a penalty marker comes flying in from long range. Chambers. Here it is called. Well, that sure was initially a nice job by Chris Chambers. Illegal block in the back. Offense number 41. 10 yd penalty. It’s still second down. Well, that’s a penalty on a blocking foul from a superb blocking back, Lorenzo O’Neal. Well, for 15 years, Lorenzo O’Neal has been the man. There he goes right off left tackle. He’s coming in from behind. Oh, and he pushes Ben Leieber in the back. Yep. He ran right up the back of Lyn of Ben Leieber, the outside linebacker. So, dual penalties on this drive for the Chargers on two of their best players. First, the false start for Antonio Gates, then Lorenzo O’Neal, the block in the back. And now the line of scrimmage all the way back to the Minnesota 36. Second and 18. Play fake to Tomlinson. Rivers throws out to Tomlinson left side and out of bounds just short of the 30 yd line. And with that, we take it to James Brown for our first NFL today report. JB. All right, Greg, let’s take a look at Vince Young going to work here at 10 play 52 yd drive. Tiptoes his way three yds for the score. Titans on top 7 nothing. Carolina has not lost on the road this year. Let’s find out what happens here. Back to Greg Gumble and Dan Gearor. Well, Vince Young and Jeff Fischer and company intent on bringing that streak to an end. Here comes the crowd. Finally, third and 13. Rivers throws down the middle. That’s complete to Nan to the 15 yd line and enough for a first down. Boy, what a good job of holding on to the football when you know there’s a safety waiting at the end of this route. And that is exactly what Na knows when you’re coming in here. Come from the right. He knows. And in this case, it’s a linebacker. It’s EJ Henderson. But you know that post pattern into the middle of the field in the intermediate distance. There’s somebody waiting to stick you the minute you get there. Nice job of holding on to the ball. Good throw by Rivers. A look at San Diego’s potent red zone offense. Double tight ends now. Well, so many weapons. Here’s LT right side to the 10 to the five and out of bounds just inside the 5 yd line and it’s going to tack on some yardage. Oh, Dwight Smith. Dwight Smith lost his head. LT was clearly out of bounds and he knocks him down after the ball was dead. Personal foul. Unnecessary roughness. Number 24 of the defense has the distance to the goal automatically. First down. Mike Kerry, our referee today, which means you’re bound to get a clear description of what happened. Boy, look at LT. Gets a good block downfield, but that’s that’s so obvious that you don’t even need any commentary. Dum, dum, dum, dumb. So, the line of scrimmage now about a yard and a half. It didn’t cost him a lot of yardage. It’s only about a yard and a half penalty. On first down, LT not going to get there on this one. Dwight Smith coming in to make the stop on that one. Dwight Smith. LT LT’s telling Dwight Smith, “Hey, calm down, buddy.” Dwight Smith was back there in the face of Philip Rivers. LT 106 career rushing touchdowns. That’s tied with Jim Brown for fourth place all time. He’s four behind the great Walter Payton. Wow. Two icons looking to take control of that position right now and not going to get there. EJ Henderson with the stop this time. Well, you got to remember who you’re trying to run against. This is the Minnesota Vikings and if they can do anything, they can play the run. especially between the tackles with the two monster Williams in there. And EJ Henderson has really come into his own. He’s his team’s leading tackler. Let’s see if Tessa wills if they try to run again. The Vikings don’t surrender many rushing touchdowns. LT spinning. Still comes up. No. Touchdown. Boy, he went right in behind Lorenzo Neil. That’s only the third rushing touchdown allowed by the Minnesota Vikings this season. And number 107 on the ground for LT. Just look at that graphic. That’s the immortal Jim Brown right in behind Lorenzo Neil. Oh yeah. He reaches out easily, gets the ball across the plane in the end zone. The crowd here didn’t think he got there, but he did. So Nate Kading has come on to [Music] add the extra point and it is good. I love the fact, Greg, that they kept running, running, running. It was a test of will and the Chargers won out. The NFL on CBS is sponsored by Southwest Airlines. With Southwest Airlines convenient non-stop flights, it’s like having your own company plane. The new AT&T, your world delivered. And by Michelob Light, a classic all malt logger brewed with the finest European hops. Try the taste. [Music] San Diego 53 yds in 10 plays. LT with his 107th career rushing touchdown. That’s good for fourth place all-time National Football League. Keep in mind they overcame two penalties on that drive as well. Andre Allison is deep for the Vikings standing at his own goal line for the kick. [Applause] And Allison from a yard deep fakes the pitch goes right up the middle. 30 40 across midfield and deep into San Diego territory and four Cletus Gordon brings him down. That’s a 60 yd return. Well, the special teams coaches from both teams are unhappy and Cletus Gordon saves a touch. Look at that. He faked the little backward pass. Look at the way the middle opened up. shook the tackle of Kading and only Cletus scor and he was the only San Diego Charger that had a shot at stopping that. Well, field position has been uh going like hotcakes so far today. And here are the Vikings starting just inside the San Diego 40 yd line. [Applause] The rookie Peterson behind Tvaris Jackson. Jackson looking for running room on the left side inside the 35 and that is whistled down at the 34 yd line. Adrien Peterson is not afraid to leave his feet and jump over somebody. You know, you’re in a perilous position when you’re in the air. There he goes again. He just leaps right over the top of Marcus Harris. He did that in a game last week and that was really close to being a That looked like a live ball, didn’t it? It did. But a pick up of five and it’s second and five. [Applause] Penalty marker flies. Peterson doesn’t get much running room and this is going to go against the Chargers. Shawn Mamman appears to defense number 56. reinforcement results. First down and that’ll be a Minnesota first down. Important for these Vikings to keep going. The San Diego Chargers have been killing their opponents in the first quarter. They’ve outscored their opponents 49 nothing in the first quarter over the last four games. Which of course then just sets up Shawn Marryman and Shawn Phillips. Phillips isn’t suited up for today, but two of the best edge rushers in football give this defense a lead in this big trouble. Jackson throws complete inside the 20 to the 21 yd line with the catch. Sydney Rice. How about how about the rush up the middle that time by the Chargers? We’ve got people flying through the air. Check this out. Coming right up the middle. Who is that that takes a somersault? I was that Shawn Marman. Let’s see who it is. as Shawn Marryman gets totally upended. We’re seeing some acrobatics here. Second and three. Peterson right side turns the corner. 15 10 five and out of bounds. Adrien Peterson’s talents on display once again to New York and James Brown JB. Hey Greg and Dan, take a look at Jacksonville battling back after spotting New Orleans a 10 nothing lead. Take a look at Quinn Gray out of Florida&M hooking up with Reggie Williams. 80 yd touchdown strike, longest offensive play of the season for the Jags. Narrow the gap to 107. Greg Gumble, Dan Deeror. All right, JB, thanks very much. You look at the Jacksonville Jaguars so far this year. Meanwhile, first and goal for Minnesota at the five. Peterson deep in the back field, but again was to Tony Richardson. Richardson goes to about the one. He bounced into the end zone. He was down. Here’s what set this up. The great speed of Adrien Peterson. This plays off tackle. Watch him bounce it right there. Shawn Marryman who has the contain. Can’t believe that he lost the edge to Adrien Peterson. That is really Marman had the contain. He thought he had it. He I’m sure I’m sure he’s still scratching his head that Peterson had the speed to get the corner. On second and goal to Peterson. Touchdown. [Applause] Adrien Peterson sixth rushing touchdown of the season, his seventh overall. and Minnesota right back up with the San Diego Chargers. Well, you get a good break with the kickoff return, but can you capitalize on a break like that and the good field position? The Vikings certainly did. [Music] Ryan Longwell’s extra point attempt is good. 248 to play in the first quarter. Adrien Peterson spurs the Viking comeback. We’re tied at seven and we’ll be right back. Innesota Vikings off the terrific kick return. 39 yds in five plays. Adrien Peterson one yardd for the touchdown and we’re tied at seven. Really set up though by that run of Peterson where he bounced it and got around the corner took it down inside the 10. Kid is explosive. [Music] This is Darren Sproul a yard inside the end zone. 15 horse collard at the 19 yd line and rolls forward to the 20. Vinnie Churchu with the special teams play. The offense of a San Diego Chargers on display after this. Welcome back everyone to the Metrodome. First down for the Chargers. They start from their 20 yd line. through a series of poor kicks and great returns, they’ve had better field position than this. They start from their own 20. This is Tomlinson Tomlinson across the 20 to about the 22 before Dwight Smith comes on and makes the stop. Well, you can see a big difference in Leenian Tomlinson and his production whether they’re playing at home or on the road. the column on the left before the start of today’s game. You can see he had all his touchdowns at home. He finally cracked one. He got a roadie here on their last possession. They’d like to improve on those numbers here in the metrodome. On second and eight, Rivers throws it away. Nobody on his side of the field. Was he outside of the box when he let go? Now Mike Carrie’s trying to find out now for intentional grounding. The quarterback was out of the pocket. The ball got back to the line of scrimmage. Yeah, Brad Child thinks not. It’s Mike Car’s call. Oo, that’s awfully close. He’s It goes tight end to tight end. I would say that if anything Philip Rivers was straddling the line, he may, you know, that is just that becomes a very vague area what’s in the pocket and out of the pocket. Certainly, I can understand Brad Child and his exasperation. And now we have a penalty marker in the secondary. Did the play clock wind down? [Applause] delay. Offense 5 yd penalty is still down. Well, that’s what happens is the play clock is running while Mike Kerry is giving his explanation about whether or not Philip Rivers was out of the pocket and the Chargers were unaware that it had already started and now it’s Norf Turner’s turn to be living. I believe the words, “What are you doing?” just came out of his mouth. Look at the penalty so far. San Diego’s racked up four already. You know, the clock only stops if there’s a penalty. So when Philip Rivers threw that ball away, the clock operator starts the 40 second clock and nobody realized it was running. Chargers now at their own 17 yd line. They need the 30 for a first down. And now another whistle. I think we’re going to get another explanation for my carry. Correction, there is no foul for delay of game after my announcement for the intentional grounding that was not called. Did not reset the game clock. So, it’ll be third down, 5 yd. Wow. So now Mike Kerry is saying the clock should have been reset because of his explanation. If you’re talking, I don’t care who you’re rooting for. And if you’re talking about fairness, that’s certainly the way it should be. The clock shouldn’t be running while the referee is talking. The clock operator saw no flag, no penalty, so he kept it running. Uh I believe that’s a gray area they call it. So instead of three, third and 13, it’s third and eight. And time running out on Rivers. Three down to two down to one. He’s not going to get this on. And he didn’t. That’s unbelievable. Philip Rivers. Do you know where the 30 Do you know where the play clock is? He’s somebody better point it out to Well, that that was just a case where they had so much motion going on. Philip Rivers couldn’t snap the ball because the motion guy was running between he and the center. This is the first time Philip Rivers has ever played a football game in a dome in the NFL. Well, now what are they doing? They pick up they picked up that flag. And now they reset the clock to 25. And it’s third and eight. On the blitz, the screen incomplete. Penalty markers down in the back field. And this is going to be a holding call against the Chargers. Well, this is some hodgepodge of this series. Offense number 73 is declined. Fourth down. That’s on the left tackle. Marcus McNeel. Mike Carrey is really good on the mic, but I think he should have given us an explanation as to why a flag was thrown for delay and then picked back up. But then we’d have been well into the next play. Well, then we’d had to start the play clock all over again after his explanation. Meldy Moore is deep for the kick. That was hardly an artistic sequence by anybody. [Applause] Ciphers booms this one out of there. Moore all the way back to his 15 yd line and back to the 20. Tackle is made by Michael Turner. 65 yd punt and a seven-yd return. [Music] And you can follow all of today’s NFL action with live scoring game centers. And for more coverage on the games, don’t miss the exclusive game recaps from the booth tonight at cbsports.com. As has been said on numerous occasions in many different circumstances, we have a situation here. Yeah, we are being told something. I guess maybe everybody figured out by now, but the clocks here inside the Metrodome are malfunctioning. They’re having an issue with the play clocks. That would explain a little bit of that last series. So, let’s hope they get them straightened away. Meanwhile, Jackson for Peterson and Peterson not very much. Big Jamal Williams, number 76, back in the middle of that San Diego defensive line made the stop. We have got some runto stopping defensive tackles in this football game between Kevin Williams and Pat Williams on the other side for Minnesota and then Jamal Williams anchoring the middle for San Diego. Now, what’s unusual here for the Vikings, they’re facing a 34, a defense that over in the NFC they don’t see very often. There’s only three teams in the league that play it very much. New England, Pittsburgh, and the Chargers. That pass almost intercepted. Jackson missed connections with Peterson out of the back field. Steven Cooper almost had himself a pick. It’ll be third and nine. You see little misses and then you see big misses. That was a big miss. That ball was nowhere near the intended receiver. I don’t know if this came off. Did he get his Oh, he got it. I’ll tell you what, he got his arm hit, didn’t he? Just as he’s releasing it. He got his elbow slapped just as he was releasing the football. So now Chester Taylor is into the back field for third and long for Minnesota. [Applause] Jackson steps into this one and throws. And oh, what a catch made on the far side of the field by Sydney Rice about whom Brad Childress just couldn’t say enough yesterday. Boy, bad finger. What bad finger? How about that blazer from Tamaris Jackson? That was tight coverage and he throws a real strike. He locks in all the way, but look at that coverage over there and he throws an absolutely perfect pass even though Quenton Jammer is all over Sydney Rice. Brilliant throw. Last 25 seconds of the first quarter. And movement on the far side. Jim Klein saucer. Matt Wilhelm was across the line too. yard penalty. It’s still first. He was drawn across that. [Applause] Now we’re going to have a discussion. Yeah, cuz Matt Wilhelm was definitely in there. Well, it’s going against Minnesota. Like Car is not going to change his uh you No. And he’s going to wind the clock, too. You saw the look though on North Turner’s face. He initially thought that penalty was going to be against his defense. So, we’ll see if the Vikings get this playoff before time expires here in the first quarter. [Applause] It’s first and 15. The give is to Peterson trying to turn the corner on the left side and knocked out of bounds at about the 30 yd line by Carlos Pulk. And with that, we come to the end of the first quarter. 77 Chargers and the Vikes. This is the NFL on CBS. Back to the start of the second quarter. Second and 14 for Tavvaris Jackson in the Minnesota offense. Chester Taylor in the back field behind him. Jackson throws this side and that’s complete to the tight end Shenko and Shenko fights his way across the 35 to the 37. Kudos to the Minnesota offensive line there. They gave him a good uh good look. Let’s check out these two guys through the first quarter. You can see Tomlinson has a touchdown, but wow, only 19 yards on seven carries. That’s uh that is a kind of yardage that LT is not used to. So now third and eight in the shotgun. Jackson with time throws incomplete misconnections on number 84. Andre Allison Quinton Jammer was there to give the hit just in case and the Vikings will kick it away. It is going to be a process that the Vikings offensively are going to be going through for a while. So much youth into key positions, quarterback, receiver, a lot of rookies playing for the Vikings. Mule pulls from his own 11. Kit at the 20. Forward to the 21 yd line. 1358 to play here in the second quarter of a 7-7 game. Back to Minneapolis after this. Hey, Pro Bowl voting is underway. Vote for your favorite players at NFL.com/pro or text pro to 7777 via your Sprint service. Standard text messaging rates apply. You vote, they play. Only at n.com. That Dan is the look for you for the rest of this season. Very, very disturbing. First down for Rivers and the Charger offense from the 22. Straight drop deep down sideline. Has his man open on the other side of Chris Chambers. Chris Chambers didn’t know where the football was initially because it’s a broken coverage. Watch Chris Chambers right here. He’s going to get turned loose. And my lord is he open, but he didn’t realize the football football was back to the inside. That’s a rookie corner out there. Marcus McCaulay and he bit on a little move earlier and he was badly out of position and boy did that work out well for him. Remember, Chris Chambers is the new kid in town in this San Diego offense, and he and Rivers haven’t had more than a couple of weeks to get to know each other. Well, there was contact there, wasn’t there? That [Applause] encroachment defense number 93, 5 yd penalty, second down. Well, when you see that many guys move at once, that is a great hard count by the quarterback. That’s all on the quarterback. The center can maybe oh, he can squeeze the football, but when you get that many guys moving, you give kudos to Philip Rivers. He barked out the count hard enough that he drew him off sides. That is very frustrating for a defensive lineman. So, now second and five for River. The Vikings are crowding the line. LT left side running across the 35 out to about the 38 yd line. A first down. We go to JB in New York. James. Hey Greg and Dan. After Drew Brees hooked up with Reggie Bush to put New Orleans up by seven. Take a look at Maurice Jones. Drew 100yd kickoff return. Longest in franchise history. Talk about answering right back. And it’s all noted at 17. Back to Greg Gumble and Dan Diodor. JB, thanks. I don’t remember watching a kicker go directly up the middle of the field before. Not one variation. There was a lot of excitement packed into that short for the bottom. Michael Turner in the back field now for San Diego along with Lorenzo Neil. And this is Turner and he’s hit behind the line of scrimmage. EJ Henderson, the middle linebacker. Well, this is not read and react. This is a run blitz. EJ Henderson is going up field all the way. The two linemen in front of him go to the inside. He scrapes to the outside right into the hole. And as luck would have it, exactly where the Chargers were trying to run the football. You know, if you got a screen set up the other way, something like that, you get burned. That time, the Vikes guessed right. LT back on second and 13. under pressure, throws it away. That screen never really developed, intended for Leenian Tomlinson. Well, that’s because a blitz off the corner and Philip Rivers had no chance but to dump the football. The screen’s going to the right, but off the left, take a look at it. Here comes Tank Williams, and Philip Rivers realizes, I got no chance. I got to get rid of this thing. It was good awareness by the Chargers quarterback to dump the football. Here is where EJ Henderson says the Vikings have been having problems. Even in third and long, they’ve been having trouble getting off the field. Haven’t been able to stop anyone. Third and 13. Rivers throws far side. Incomplete intended for Antonio Gates. And again, the Vikings come with pressure. [Applause] The pocket for Philip River has started to get mighty tight. All right, let’s take a look here. Ray Edwards working his way against Marcus McNeel. He gets around the corner for some pressure. There was pressure right up the middle and Rivers goes down hard. So the Viking Viking defense gets off the field on third and long. Meldy Moore deep for another booming kick by Mike Cipher. from the seven. Oh, penalty markers fly. What a terrific hit down deep by San Diego’s Michael Turner. Well, you called it, Greg. What a punt by Ciphers. That ball just would not come down. 57 yds in all. And how about how about the elevation? So here’s Mike Kerry during the return. Holding by the receiving team number 59. Half the distance of the goal from the end of the run. They retain possession. First down. Time out. Penalty is on. Heath Farwell. It’ll back the Vikings up a bit. We take a timeout with 1207 to play in the half. 1207 to play here in the second quarter. Greg Gumble, Dan Deerorf at the Metrodome and see where these drives have been starting for Minnesota. It’s their second time starting inside their own 10 yd line. Adrien Peterson behind the quarterback, gets the hand off and is hit almost immediately by Igor Oanski. Man, I’ve been I’ve been waiting for you to call his name. How do you not love a defensive lineman named Igor Oshanski? Good look there at Jackson taking the snap. He handled that flawlessly, but Adrien Peterson nowhere to go. Oshansky playing this game in the Minnesota backfield. Bad block. He just broke across the face of the blocker right into the play. Minnesota was 29 yds on the ground today. They do much better than that. There’s movement up front. Ball start. Offense number 81. Half the distance of the goal is still second down. The tight end Vanti Shenko. We to we showed you that snap, the exchange from Matt Burke to Tvaris Jackson brings into focus all the more that broken finger by Jackson where he said, “Yeah, he’s got to be a little careful of it on the exchange.” Yeah, sure he does. But he handles Hey, but what have we seen? A missed block here on one play. puts him back and now a a false start. That’s that’s not the index finger of the Jackson. Second and 13. Peterson up to about the three. Jamal Williams. Jamal Williams who told us yesterday, you know, when you when you come to the ballpark, you want to play against the best. And he’s looking across the line at Adrien Peterson. Well, and he is the best. There’s not a nose tackle in football the equal of Jamal Williams. and he’s a 10-year guy and he had double knee surgery. There’s Teddy Catrell, the defensive coordinator for the Chargers. Guy that’s been calling defensive signals in this league for a long time. Third and 11. [Applause] They’re going to run it. Peterson slipped as he started to get underway or make a Chester Taylor by mistake. In any event, Vikings will be kicking out of their own end zone. It means more good field position for the San Diego Chargers. And you know, I think that play calling really reflects the fact that Brad Childress knows he’s got a secondyear quarterback. He’s got a lot of rookies in the game, a lot of youngsters, and he did not want to make the catastrophic error in his end of the field. Kick by takes a Minnesota bounce, but it’s not going to get to midfield. That’s out of bounds at about the 44 or 45 yd line. Prime starting position for Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers. [Music] 950 to play in the second quarter. Good football teams take advantage of this field position. Reverse give to Thomas. Tom Wilson is buried at the 45 yd line. May have even lost a yard. Well, we went into this game knowing that it was going to be fun to track Leenian Tomlinson and Adrien Peterson. They both have a touchdown so far, but let’s see a little bit about what’s going on. [Applause] [Music] Their [Applause] [Music] day is just getting started. Second and 11. Pump fake by Rivers. Rivers going deep down this side. Oh, what a defensive play made by Dwight Smith. Vincent Jackson had a touchdown taken away. [Music] Well, Dwight Smith got up to celebrate and he should celebrate because he broke up what would have been a touchdown. It’s just that Philip Rivers underthrew it just a little bit. That ball would have been maybe a foot farther. That would have been a touchdown. But good recovery by Dwight Smith. Go ahead and give him some credit. He was beaten initially, but he got himself back into it. Third and 11. And right now the Chargers are struggling against the worst pass defense in the NFL. River six straight incompletions. Standing back, throws this side. Incomplete at the 30. Whisk or a flag down as he makes it inside 25. This time Jackson pulls it in. Let’s check the marker. Yeah, Jackson’s defender fell down. Was he pushed down? It’s against Jackson. Yeah, the guy who’s covering him ends up on the turf. Number 83 10 yd penalty is still third down. Yeah, they’re going to call Vincent Jackson for a push off. That would have been a 21 yd gain and now nullified. Well, when your defender ends up on the turf, it makes it kind of obvious. Let’s take a look at it. Right. Well, that isn’t the reason the Griffins slipped. Boy, it looked from that angle, it sure didn’t look like there was a whole lot of interference going on. Nonetheless, third and forever. Third and 21. Charges at their own 45. Rivers pump fakes again. Goes this side. Jackson off of his hands. He was walking the sideline. It’s incomplete. And again, that pass from Philip Rivers too far to the outside. I’m not sure that that ball could have been caught and stay in bounds by Vincent Jackson. [Music] So, Mike Ciphers has been launching some some incredible punts today. Meldy Moore is inside his own tent. [Applause] Let him go. Let him go. Fair catch called for and made at the 11. 827 to play. 77 tie here in Minnesota. 827 to play in the first half. Minnesota San Diego tied at seven. Brad Childress’s defense standing up and being counted today. Dan. Oh, he’s got to be thrilled with the way that they are defending Philip Rivers and the San Diego passing game on first down. Jackson the throw. Peterson 20 25 out of bounds at the 30 yd line. You know, this is representative of what the Minnesota defense has done so far today. The way they have tackled, they’re in the back field. They’re pressuring Philip Rivers. They’re all over LT. Keep in mind, this is a defense right there that’s been giving up. Their opponents have averaged 67% completion percentage this season. Philip Rivers right now is six of 14. They are playing out of character. And well, this is Peterson looking for running room and not finding any. Now, can they can that defensive effort get some help from the offense? Yeah, I’ll guarantee you, Philip right now is more than a little frustrated at their inability to come up with something big. He’s had open guys and they they just are that little bit out of sync on the day. A passer rating of 55.4 for the season. He came in at 90.3. Right. Second and 10. [Applause] Jackson moving the throw. Had it batted, bouncing around in midair. And who’s got it? It fell incomplete. Dangerously close to being picked off. That ball was in play. Sha Marman right in the middle of it. Boy, that thing was just floating in the air. That baby looked awfully tantalizing to somebody there. There comes Marman from the left. He just gets up. He comes back down. Still has a coordination. Oh, Jacques Ceser almost at it. Oh, that ball was just all over the place. Third and 10. Jackson going to go deep down the near sideline and overthrows Andre Allison. Well, he actually he did the right thing. But we’ve got another flag. Fourth down. Got a holding call against Minnesota. That’ll be Decline. But he had to put a lot of air under this football. Quentyn Jammer had everything underneath. There’s Quenton Jammer, number 23, running with Allison. So really, he had no choice but to put it out there. Yes, a perfectly thrown ball would have been a completion, but better to be long than short. Whoa, look at this kick. Wilhelm could have done that. That was ugly. And it’s going to come to rest inside the 30 yd line. Did I date myself with Wil? I got the point. Noted knuckle ball pit pitcher. This is a knuckle ball punt. That is a total shank off the outside of the foot. 39 yd kick and now from his own 32. Rivers gives to Tomlinson and Tomlinson gets nothing. It’ll be second and 10. Well, LT takes a hand off and he’s staring right at Pat Williams. All 320 lbs of him. And I think most people thought the San Diego offense would find a little more success through the air. Nobody’s run the ball effectively against Minnesota. And no one’s running the ball effectively today. You know, they they’ve you know, the funny part of it is they’ve only been given up 2.9 yds of carry all season. They’re playing the running game before. Rivers on the move. On the move. Throws it away. Ketchi Uza in hot pursuit. Boy, and you can just see Philip Rivers getting up, going back to his blockers going, “What’s going on here? Come on, guys.” Talking about that Minnesota defense. San Diego had a 53 yd scoring drive for its touchdown. Four other drives have netted 13 yds. There goes Williams to the sideline in a passing situation. He doesn’t participate in the nickel. Stuffing the runs his job. Once again, Minnesota trying to change things around on third down. River going to go deep down the sideline. It is incomplete. Well, there was contact downfield. And that’s why the receiver wasn’t at Philip Rivers screaming that there isn’t an illegal contact call right there. Take a look at that. Vincent Jackson against the rookie Marcus McCauley. And there was all sorts of contact well beyond the 5 yd area. And I thought while the ball was in the air, they got away with one there. Melvin Ward deep. This Ciphers kick is going to bounce inside the 25 and roll out of bounds at about the 15 yd line or so. 558 to play in the first half of this scoring game and score of the tie game as you look at some numbers from around the league. Drew Brees, that’s a lot of football in one half already be over 200 yds. the quarters with 84 yards already. Boy, already touched it 15 times. That is a day’s work. Lee Evans always a big play threat. Roy Williams in there as well. So the Vikings now from their own 16 yd line and Adrien Peterson in the back field. Jackson run to about 25. Boy, and Minnesota is just working like heck to improve their field position. They have just had horrible field position here for a while. If they could string some first downs together and just make San Diego play on their side of the 50 a little more often. There was some question as to whether or not Jackson was even going to play today and he had that finger wrapped yesterday when we saw him. You know, it’ be a totally different story if that was on his non-throwing hand. Here’s Peterson. First down and more 35 across the 40 penalty marker back up field. Oh boy. This back keeps up. They’re they’re just killing themselves. That’s an 18 yd pickup. Looks like it’s going to be called back. [Applause] Boy, that was the play they needed. There are two fouls, both on the offense. Holding number 40 is declined. Holding 64 is accepted. 10 yds. Still second down. Anthony Herrera, the right guard flagged for the one that they will take. Yeah, they get Klein saucer too. And Herrera’s going, why do they why are they picking on me? Good. There he is right there on the left. Oh, and you can see he just reaches out with his left hand and catches Matt Wilhelm, the linebacker, and just drags him down. He was into him good. Had a good hit, but you got to keep that left hand at home. You just can’t grab the guy that openly. So now a second and 11. Peterson just across the 20 yd line. Adrien Peterson, who comes into this game 5.8 yds a carry, the best in the NFL, is right around three yards a carry for the day. Well, you know, a lot like Barry Sanders, you just keep giving a guy the ball because for all those little two and three yardd runs, you know, somewhere there he’s a broken tackle away from going 60 or 70. And you can see where he ranks this season. And it’s a brilliant start for this rookie from Oklahoma. Each team with just one first down this quarter from the shotgun incomplete the pass intended for Sydney Rice and that’ll bring on the punting unit. Well, that’s there’s outside pressure but then there’s the pressure that comes right up the middle in your face and that’s what Jackson was trying to deal with right there. No way he could step into that throw. He had to just flick it trying to get rid of it. I think Shawn Marryman right in his face. So Darren Sprouls back at his own 35. Who’s had some questionable kicks to say the least gets off a great one this time. Holy mackerel. All the way back inside his 15 yd line is Sproul to the 25 and twisting his way across the 30 to the 31 yd line. A 68 yd punt by number five. 359 to play. And we will remind you coming up next. The showdown of the unbeatens. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Payton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts. Houston at Oakland. Check your local listings for the game in your area. Undefeated teams. I What a dream matchup that is coming up. Hold on, guys. Can you imagine the noise level inside the dome in Indianapolis? Wow. I’m not That’ll That’ll break some decimal meter. First down for the Charcoal and LT straight ahead across the 35 to the 37. Well, he meets Ben Leieber there, former San Diego Charger. That was that was a muscle run right there. Let’s go right in off right guard. Oo, just gets a little crease right there. And Liber in a good position. You say muscle run. Everybody involved too. Second and four after the six-yd gain. LT again. Straight up the middle. Fred Evans with the stop. What is EJ Henderson telling us? Here’s Lorenzo O’Neal. And Dan, we’ve seen so much of him over the years, 15 years, and and EJ Henderson still feels he’s the best lead blocker on any team. Well, and he’s right. He’s still I mean, the old fashion true fullback. There aren’t many of them left. Remember some of the great Sam Gash and some of the guys like that. Lorenzo Neil still gets it done even at this age. Another big third down on defense for the Vikings. Third and four. Tom Collinsson on the slant. Oh, another fine defensive play. This time Cedric Griffin. Well, I think everybody thinking that with Antoine Winfield out of this game, this secondary is really going to be victimized. Anything but these guys are really playing outstanding football. That is exactly how you defend that inside pattern. You make contact, you disrupt his route, and then you’re the one that works to the inside. 10 consecutive incompletions now for Philip Rivers. Look at this kick by Cipher. Jump down inside the five. Tracked down at the goal line. Is it saved? Yes. Antonio Croardi down there to cover. And they’re talking about whether or not it went into the end zone or not. Oh, now they’re calling touchback. This is Cro Marty. He’s in the field of play. Oh, there is right toe. Player’s foot was on the line. Touch back. That’s right. That’s a good call. Couldn’t see that initially, but his right toe touched the line. A great effort by Antonio Cromardy. [Applause] 224 to play in the first half. Philip Rivers just mentioned 10 straight incomplete passes. Six of 17 for the day. Not what he envisioned coming into the dome. Well, 59 yds against a team that’s been averaging averaging now giving up 288 yards a game. And now Tvaris Jackson, they just can’t get any field position. and Peterson with room to run across the 25 to the 27 yd line. And that will likely bring us to the two-minute warning. Vikings aren’t in a hurry to get this play off and so the clock will wind down to two minutes to play. Neither of these teams has called a timeout as yet here in the first half. Two minutes to play at the Metrodome, San Diego 7, and the Vikings 7. Back after this. [Music] Hey, coming up on the Sprint Halftime Report, JB Dan Shannon, coach Bill Cower have all the latest NFL scores and highlights and get you ready for New England and Indie. It’s all coming up on the Sprint Halftime Report. Quinton Jammer has reinjured his hamstring, we are told, and he is out of this game. Meanwhile, Adrien Peterson brought down by number 42, Clinton Hart. Well, again, San Diego is sitting on the Minnesota running game. Clinton Hart, the strong safety. When when you see the strong safety making a uh making a tackle for no gain or a one-yd loss. Pretty pretty easy to see eight in a box. Ted Catrell is going to I I want to see if Dvaris Jackson if he can throw the ball effectively enough to beat us. With Quinton Jammer out, Antonio Pardy, who had a big day with two touchdowns a week ago against Houston, is in the secondary. Third and five. And they’re going to run it. Peterson hurles. There he goes to the line and just across the 30 to the 31 yd line and a first down. Man, that is It has been a while since I’ve seen a running back so easily leave his feet and jump over somebody that let me tell you when you can come down at an awkward angle on one leg and really hurt yourself as a running back. Jacques Cesair, the defensive end, has limped off of the field for San Diego. And now they’re going to use a timeout. So the Vikings use a timeout. 46 seconds to play in the first half trying to get something started. So the Chargers are still looking at Jacques Cesar on their side of the field. Meanwhile, Vikings break the huddle. And Cesar, one of the valuable guys in their rotation. He’s one of the defensive linemen that they have in there in nickel and pass rushing situations. See how Brad Childers plays this final minute. Hump fake throwing out here to the side. an incomplete intended for Chester Taylor out of the back field. And we have a marker down further downfield. Yeah, got a flag clear down at the San Diego 45. Got a holding call. Somebody in the San Diego backfield before the pass. Holding defense number 24. 5 yd penalty. Automatic first down. Cletus Gordon. Cletus Gordon here working against Bobby Wade. Yeah, that’ll do it. That’ll do it. That’ll pretty much do it. That might be impeding his progress. Neither team doing themselves a favor here in the first half. Taylor in the back field on first down. Jackson with a little time now going to run it. 40 diving across the 45 and a first down. And so much for sliding. And is Jackson all right? He’s not. He doesn’t look it. Diver Jackson rather than sliding goes for the first down and he got it. But at what cost? Well, he just threw himself in there head first and took a pretty good shot. So the Vikings take a timeout. They look at Tvaris Jackson. 29 seconds remaining here in the first half as he goes for the first down and takes a tremendous hit. Well, Jackson with a smile on his face as he’s taken off. And you know there’s a you know is he the Vikings quarterback of the future? You know he missed two games earlier this season with a groin injury. He missed the game last week with the broken finger and now he gets started off this week. Grant children has, you know, decisions to make as Tarveris Jackson, the long-term quarterback for this football team. Staying healthy is a big part of being a team’s go-to guy. Dan, we were here last year when the Tvaris Jackson era began. We sure were in Minnesota. Yeah, you’re right. In a game against the Jets in the middle of December last year. Ballinger under the gun. goes down back to the 37 yd line courtesy of Luis Castillo. And right now I would kneel on the football and head to the locker room. Clock has stopped with 25 seconds and we’ll be back. [Applause] Initial report from the Minnesota Vikings is a head injury for Tvaris Jackson. He’ll be evaluated at halftime. There is a snap that goes over the head of Ballinger trying to track it down and he does at the 20 yd line. Well, maybe they’ll kneel on it now. [Applause] Number 97 5 yd penalty is still second down. Mike Gary says Ryan Bingham was offside. But Ballinger wasn’t even looking. The ball went right over his shoulder. Yeah, Matt Burke just snapped it. That was a very catchable ball in the shotgun formation. Well, they got a break with San Diego being off sides. San Diego got a touchdown a week ago from an errant snap on a on a attempted punt. sailed over the punter’s head. They’re still being aggressive. Bowlinger has that one complete across midfield to Bobby Wade. And Bowlinger wants to spike the ball and stop the clock. And he does. So, the clock has stopped with five seconds to play in the first half. Well, actually, I think the game clock is saying seven. y and again we the clocks have been malfunctioning. One stadium clock shows 7 seconds. Ryan Longwell has a 55 yd field goal to his credit this year. Well, this is out of his range. We’re Come on, Dan. We’re indoors. You could catch a draft. It’d be 65 be 64 yards or so. And play clock is winding down now on Bul. He got it away in time. Throws it sideline and that is complete and out of bounds. Cydney Rice with the grab and now Longwell is going to come onto the field. Well, give Minnesota credit. Brad Childress was he was aggressive which he’s been all year. This is going to shape up to be about a 53 y, no 58 y, excuse me, from 58 yds away. Longwell got it away and it comes up just short and they’re going to return it. Here’s Marty and Croardi down the right sideline with a head of steam to the 30 20 10 5 touchdown. That would be 109 yds on the return. And Brad Childress, you could fry an egg on the top of his head. his field goal kicking team just went to sleep on a long field goal. You got to act like you’re on a punt team and you have to cover it. And Antonio Croy with two touchdowns last week continues his streak of being developing into one of the more dangerous guys in the NFL with a football in his hand. He returned an interception 70 yardd for a touchdown a week ago against the Houston Texans. recovered a ball in an end zone and now returns a field goal 109 yd for a touchdown to end the first half. Kay is 2 in from stepping on the back line of the end zone. You couldn’t be any farther back in the end zone and this field goal coverage team mostly line them and there’s no way he watch how close he comes to stepping on the back line fielding that ball right there. I mean what a sensational piece of athleticism to catch that ball and stay in Brown. 109 yds doesn’t do it justice. did not know more than that. Halftime in Minnesota 14-7 Chargers. The sprint halftime report is next. A tough tough end to a first half where the Vikings, as I said, stood toe-to-toe with the San Diego Chargers. And suddenly it’s 14-7 San Diego as we get underway in the second half. Andre Allison three yds deep in the end zone 15 slips and falls at about the 17 yd line. Well, we saw history with Antonio Croy running back that field goal. The last big one we got to go back to November of last year at the Meadowlands. Devin Hester, he decides, you know what? I’m going to pick you guys out. And here I go. This one was the 108. And Antonio Proardi is in the record books with a return that unlike Hers cannot be beaten. You can tie it. There is no 110. Can’t be done. Ain’t going to do it. First down. Brooks Bowlinger. The quarterback throws it out here and comes up short of Tony Richardson, his intended receiver. Bowlinger playing because Tvaris Jackson was taken off the field late in the first half and and he gets hit from both directions. From the right by Cooper, but watch the left Shawn Marryman. Watch Marryman’s knee. First the left, then the right. Both seem to make contact with the face mask of Tover Jackson. So unfortunately he took two big hits from both sides and he was at a bit of an awkward angle and he’s out. This is Adrien Peterson and Peterson across the 20 to about the 22 yd line. Look at the first half numbers. The Vikings out rushing the Chargers. 91 total yards of offense for the San Diego Chargers and only 2 and 1/2 yards per carry. The Minnesota defense is playing well. And Luis Castillo now in pain on the ground with his hands reaching down toward his right knee. Wow. And this is this is a real rock on the San Diego defense. So we’ll take a break here. 1435 to play in the third. They will look after Castillo and we’ll be back after this. [Applause] defensive end Luis Castillo being helped off the field by the Chargers training staff. He he tried to take one step to walk off and that’s all he could do. He got the one step and now he doesn’t want to put that right foot on the ground at all. We looked at all the replays and we can’t see where it happened. There was a huge pileup, seven or eight people all around his legs. Meanwhile, Brooks Bowlinger looking at a third and four. Chester Taylor in the back field with it. [Music] [Applause] With time throws and that’s complete to Robert Ferguson, number 89. And that’s right at the first down marker. And appears, well, let’s take a look and see. Ferguson looked like he was waving that football trying to get it across the first down mark. [Applause] Watch Ferguson after he catches. Good job of Bowlinger looking off to the right and then coming back to the left right there. He reaches that ball out. Let me tell you something, Robert. That is a highrisk deal there. And you know what? That’s a first down move though. Ballinger pass far side and that is incomplete. Well, people are just jumping all over the place. Was that Steven Cooper coming in on that rush? A smart thing to do, Dan. We saw Adrien Peterson do it. Well, I don’t think it’s a good habit for Peterson, but this jumping over a potential blocker. Darn right. Watch this. That just that’s just getting clear over the guy. That That was a tremendous tremendous move by Steven Cooper. Second and 10. That’s why as a running back when you go to go block a guy you got to hit him in the chest. You can’t go for the cut. Ballinger throws on the run. That’s complete Ferguson. Ferguson across the 35 to about the 36. Seven yd gain on the play. Well, we’ve seen Ballinger play when he was with the Jets. He’s mobile. He can run and he’s a pretty effective guy. that ball just a little bit back behind Ferguson, but he reacted to it and made the hands catch. I don’t think Brooks Ballinger is your franchise quarterback, but he’s a good guy to have on your roster. There’s Tvaris Jackson looking on from the bench. 33. And this is Peterson. Peterson into the open midfield 45. And there he goes to the 10. Touchdown. [Applause] 64 quick yards. He’s pretty good. We talked about it in the first half. That’s why you keep giving him the ball. Keep giving him the ball. He’s one missed tackle away from a touchdown that time behind really good blocking. Matt Burke really does an effective job at the point of attack and then after that it’s just arm tackles and that’s not going to do it. Brian Longwell’s extra point kick is good. 1244 to play in the third. We were wondering how the Vikings would respond here at the top of the second half. Adrien Peterson answered that. 33 yd. Adrien Peterson’s first touchdown of the day, a one-y, his second one a bit more dramatic. 64 yds and the Vikings and Chargers are tied again, this time at 14. Darren Sproul from four yds deep in the end zone. 15 dragged down at the 20 yd line. Eric Frampton with the stop on special team. Adrien Peterson talks it over with teammate Sydney Rice. Six plays, 83 yardds, the last 64, courtesy of the rookie out of Oklahoma. And again, he ran to the left side. He had a good block at the point of attack from McKini Hutchinson. Matt Burke pinned him back to the inside and away he went and when Adrien Peterson gets in the open field, his speed is dazzling. So now it’s Rivers and the Chargers. First down from their own 20. Lost the handle. Who’s on the ball? Minnesota. Minnesota. Chad Greenway number 52 came up with the ball. Keep in mind Cory Wro is playing center because Nick Hardwick is out with a foot injury. But Cory Wro, a veteran quarterback. The ball seemed to hit Philip Rivers right in the hands. It came up. Wro delivered it. For some reason, Rivers just didn’t seem to be able to handle it. Again, though, maybe he brought it up in a wrong position or whatever. It’s always tough to lay blame on something like that. Minnesota has not made a habit of turning takeaways into touchdowns. Here’s Peterson. Peterson to the 15. Look at the way this guy runs. This guy just is Brad Childress telling us the knock. Take a look at the lost fumble by Philip Rivers tied for most in the league with a couple other quarterbacks, Steve McNair and Jason Campbell. But this Peterson, Brad Childress saying, you know, the knock on him when he came out of college was he runs too hard. Have you ever heard anybody say anything like that? Childress says he practices too hard. He’s got to slow him down. He’s reckless. He just And that last run, he just threw himself in there. Second and five. Peterson trying to change directions. Stumbled in the back field and Matt Wilhelm was there to stop him. I think he tried to do a Barry Sanders cut right there. That was I think he was just trying to make a little too big a move right there. He got a little too much on the outside edge of his left shoe. Got to have your feet a little more underneath you than that. Peterson on the sideline now. Chester Taylor in the back field on third and seven. And now Taylor flanked to the top of the screen. Ballinger throws this side. That’s complete. Number 81 is Vanti Shenko. Out of bounds, but enough for a first down. First and goal Minnesota. Well, Brick Ballinger has got things moving. This pass was behind Shenko and he does a really good job of a catching it and then b leaping over the wouldbe tackler. That is hard to do when you have to go back and dig out that pass that’s a little bit low and behind you. I feel like we’re have arrived at the high hurdles championship somewhere. We have seen more leaping in this game than I’ve seen in a while. First and goal for the Vikings. Just inside the 10. What we’re seeing is a lot of good play. Chester Taylor straight ahead inside the five to about the three. And right now you can feel it for the Vikings. They are exuding confidence at the moment, especially offensively. Their line is getting some traction. They’re moving these guys out. And Philip Rivers trying to figure out how he and Cory Wro happened to misfire on a center quarterback exchange. Now Taylor and Tony Richardson in the back field on second and goal three. Taylor left side. Nothing there. Oh, the ball’s out. Does that Did you hear a whistle? I did not hear a whistle. It goes over to the San Diego Chargers. Marlon McCree has the football. Well, that’s how quickly momentum can disappear. [Applause] That’s how quickly it evaporates. Time out on the field. 939 to play in the third and a Minnesota threat goes by the board. Well, the air has gone out of the balloon on the Minnesota side of the field. Leanian Tomlinson back onto the field for San Diego. First down Chargers from their own six. And this is LT. Nothing doing Pat Williams the first to hit him. Let’s go back and take a look at the fumble. Chester Taylor doesn’t look like he’s got it put away. From the left 20 McCree, watch his hand go up. The ball’s coming down and it just drops right into his arms. It really just dropped right out to Marlon McCree who was on the ground. And we’ve got another injured player out on the field. This time it’s Ray Edwards, number 91 for the Minnesota Vikings. While we’re waiting, let’s check in with James Brown in New York. JB. Hey, Greg and Dan. The big game coming up between the unbeatens. Indianapolis hosting New England. Marvin Harrison definitely will not be going in this one. He will be inactive as well as the left tackle for the coach Tony Yugo. Not the way you want to be hosting a torrent scoring New England Patriots squad. Back to Greg and Dan. Thank you, JB. But you know Tony Dunie is taking a look at the big picture and not just at this football game when he makes a move like that. No, you’re right. No, there’s a lot of football left to be played this season. And Tony Dunie, talk about a guy that won’t get carried away with the moment. You know, it’s just it’s much the way North Turner said. We asked him about Shawn Phillips. Would he play today? And he says he wanted to play, but he said Shawn Phillips would just go out there and play 10 snaps, hurt himself again, and we’d lose him again for another couple of weeks. You’re exactly right. Norf Turner there looking at his board trying to figure out how do I get my superstars unttracked because Minnesota has held these guys in check. But Damen Tomlinson has 13 carries for 34 yds. Antonio Gates doesn’t have a catch yet. He’s been removed from this game. Second and 11. Rivers to throw. throwing over the middle across the 20 and that’s complete to Chris Chambers for a first down. Well, that’s a heck of a catch by Chris Chambers. Talk about digging one out. [Applause] Working against the rookie McCauley, but the ball’s kind of low. Oh, that ball came loose. Oh, I think the red flag might come flying. Oh, they’re actually they’re being ruled incomplete. Okay, the officials got together. They gave it to him initially. I think it’s pretty evident that Chambers does not maintain possession of this ball. Yeah, it actually made contact with the turf. The hand by Macau just reaches over and bounces it off the turf. So now the conversation Mike Carrey having with North Turner. The ruling on the field is an incomplete pass being challenged by San Diego. Well, now we flip to the other side. Nor Turner is going to challenge him. 852 to play in the third. Back with the result of this in just a moment. The NFL on CBS is sponsored by The Home Depot. You can do it. We can help. And by the new triple dip strips from KFC, they’re good. [Music] Back in the Metrodome, here comes referee Mike Kerry. He has made his decision on the challenge by Norf Turner. Here we go. After the review, the receiver did not have complete control. The ball hit the ground. Incomplete pass. San Diego’s charged with their first 10 timeout. It It doesn’t matter that it wasn’t Chris Chambers fault that the ball touches the ground. Marcus McCauley gets a hand in there while Chambers is trying to establish possession. Macaulay comes in and forces the ball to touch the ground prior to Chambers having complete possession. So instead of a first down for San Diego, Rivers is looking at a third and 11 from his own five and he’s trying to get everybody lined up properly. Antonio Gates he sends to the other side of the field from the shotgun. Rivers of his own end zone. No, doesn’t get it away and he runs it out to the five and slides down at the 10 yd line. [Applause] How did he escape from the end zone? And we’ve got a flag down. I don’t know because this isn’t exactly personal foul. Major face mask. Defense number 94. 15 yds. There it is right there. Oh, no kidding. Pat Williams. Pat Williams jerked ahead of Philip Rivers all the way around. You know, as a defensive lineman, you’re just reaching in there. You’re just trying to grab anything. I don’t think he said, “Hey, I’m intentionally going to grab his face mask.” But what a break for the Chargers. What a break for San Diego. Philip Rivers is hardly having the game of his life. Uh, no, I don’t think you can call six of 18 the game of his life. And again, I can’t believe that Minnesota has so totally removed Antonio Gates from the picture, but he escapes from the shadow of his own goal post. First down, the give to Tomlinson. Hit early behind the line. EJ Henderson. [Music] Well, let’s go ahead and see how the big three are doing in this game. We just chronicled Rivers and his completion percentage. Leenian being held in check even though he does have a touchdown and Antonio Gates only thrown to once this entire game. Well, the reason that Rivers isn’t throwing is because he’s covered. Rivers with a quarterback rating of 43.5 as we speak. Second and 11. This is Chris Chambers. Chambers with the catch. Comes up just short of the 30 yd line. 735 to play in the third. Welcome to those of you just joining us here in the Metrodome. Greg Gumble and Dan Deardor. It is a 1414 tie. The Vikings and the Chargers in a game that has had as many twists as you can possibly imagine. The biggest play, Antonio Pro Martini at the end of the first half for San Diego returned a missed field goal for 109 yds. An NFL record. That completion by Rivers, his first in his last 12 tries. Third and five. Oh, look at the defensive play. What a rush put on by EJ Henderson. Incomplete pass is the ruling again right up the middle and jumping over the block of Leenian Tomlinson. Here comes Tomlinson, but he goes low and Henderson just jumps over the top. I’m telling you, as a running back, you got to stick them in the chest. You go low, they go high, your quarterback goes down. Now here’s Mike Ciphers who’s been kicking lights out for the most part today. Seventh punt. Look at this one. Meldy Moore backing up all the way to his 10 yd line and down at about the 18. Carlos Pulk makes the stop. 60 yd punt by Ciphers. Minnesota on offense after this. [Music] The man in the middle of that picture, bend over with the baseball cap on backwards, is Tavvaris Jackson, who started this game at quarterback for Minnesota. Injured late in the first half, has been replaced by Brooks Ballinger, who is the quarterback now. Adrien Peterson behind them. First down, Vikings at their own 18. And here’s Peterson. Explodes to a hole on the right side out to the 25 yd line. It was a heck of an effort by Jackson trying to get a first down rather than just sliding the way quarterbacks can and he gets it from the front by Steven Cooper and he gets a knee to the head from behind by Shawn Marryman. Yeah, you got to admire his courage. He was going for it trying to move the chains for his team. But sometimes as a quarterback you got to take the safe and easy way out. On second and four, Peterson running room. 30 35 and a first down. Shawn Marman makes the stop. This San Diego defense gives up less than 90 yards a game rushing. Seventh best in the NFL today. Minnesota has come up with 163 on the ground. Well, he’s got some great blocking by his offensive line. That time Matt Burke came all the way around. Take a look at this. Leenian Tomlinson has 100 yardds fewer than Adrien Peterson and only five fewer carries. He has been bottled up. On first down, Peterson to the left. Running wood. Another first down. Close to midfield. Matt Wilhelm pulled him tab. But this rookie is fun to watch. Well, we talked to Steve Hutchinson. They’re all pro guard. And he goes, “Hey, Peterson is a beast.” He used the word beast. He said he had a 70 plus yard touchdown run, came to the sidelines, and he’s not even breathing hard. He’s just smiling. He said he’s just He said it looked like he just took a walk in the park. There’s Hutchinson right there. One of the five best offensive linemen in football. This guy, talk about a beast. He’s the guys. He’s the beast. Chester Taylor in the lineup now. Bow gives to Taylor right side midfield. Bounces off two tacklers inside the 45 to the 44 yd line. And Greg, what did he This is This is hard hard running. I’m telling you what, that’s just good hard running. Don’t go for the sidelines. take a hit and go back into the field and pick up more yards. Well, as these Vikings have made have have have really had their problems again today with injuries. Steve Hutchinson pointed out, lack of canuity, continuity has taken its toll. Yeah, it really has. And again, it’s been a revolving door at quarterback. Second and two, Peterson back into the lineup. He gets the football and he’s to the 40 and that’s enough for a first down. [Applause] Adrien Peterson telling us that he just he just can’t step out of bounds. He said, “I want to deliver the blow. I’m not a receiver.” In other words, I’m not a pinñata where they could just come up and take their shots at me. I want to deliver the final blow. Remember, he asked him about the speed of the game and he said for the first couple of games of this NFL season, it was pretty fast. He says, “But now it feels like college.” He did. He just that you know that he wasn’t being in any way egotistical when he said I think it was just an honest assessment. Didn’t you think? Bull to the throw on first down going to go deep. Has his man wide open as Rice inside the five. Touchdown. [Applause] Oh, how close did he come to stepping out of bounds after he caught that ball? Boy, did he have to do a tight rope down the sidelines working against the coverage of San Diego. Whoa, he was he was close. He drifts so really low. And what a leap. Where did he leave the ground? He left the ground just around the five yd line, real close to the four and elevated himself into the end zone. Minnesota has taken the lead. 307 to play in the third. Rice his second touchdown catch of the season. Longwell for the extra point. The Minnesota Vikings two and five on the season showing all the heart a coach could want here today. Brad Childress told us that Sydney Rice has a 40in vertical leap. I’ll tell you, his horizontal leap isn’t too bad either. Again, a mistake in the San Diego coverage just turning him loose. He is at the 4 1/2 yd line when he takes off. Unlimited potential for this rookie from South Carolina. Drayton Florence getting burned on the play. Brooks Ballinger his first touchdown pass of the season and the Vikings lead 214. Neil Rice came out after his sophomore year. He just turned 21 in the last couple of weeks. And every time you talk to a Viking player, they go, “He’s just a kid. He’s man does he he has an unlimited future, doesn’t he? Minnesota 180 total yards here in the third quarter to nine for San Diego. [Music] And right now, Nor is having flashbacks to that threeame skid where his team just didn’t play good football. Darren Sprouls is deep. This is cold and he won’t run it out of the end zone. 307 to play. Meanwhile, Howard’s Chargers rivals Kansas City doing JB in New York. All right, Greg, take a look here. Larry Johnson on the receiving end of this one. The big fella taking it a good distance. Second touchdown today as he bulls over 30 yd score. Kansas City nursing a one-point lead over Green Bay in the fourth. Back to Greg and Dan JB. Thank you. There’s the picture at top the AFC West. Dan, you and I will be in Kansas City a week from today. And that game of some concern to Chargers fans, although I don’t think the Charger players are watching it, they got their hands full. Philip Rivers drops, throws sideline. This is complete to Vincent Jackson. [Applause] [Music] Well, that was a good job by Philip Rivers of identifying the open guy and delivering a good pass. And right now, the San Diego passing game, they just need a few good plays to get back in sync. They are so far out of joint. Prior to that play right there, they had 100 yards total offense. 100 yardds through almost three quarters. That’s That’s hard to believe for this machine that goes up and down the field, especially when we talk about the weapons these Chargers can break. Rivers throws on the slant. That’s complete. The penalty marker flies. There’s Antonio Gates. Let’s check the marker. For the first time today, let’s see if it counts. [Applause] And hands to the face. Defense number 23, 5 yd penalty automatic. Penalty is on quarterback Cedric Griffin. Catch here. Last play. The penalty is declined. Play results in a first down. Right. So, finally, Antonio Gates gets into the mix for San Diego. And that’s two completions, two straight first downs for a Charger offense badly in need of a jump start. Here’s [Music] Antonio Gates. Just 10 receiving yards today, averaging 91 on the year. I think right now they’re trying to figure out whether to accept that penalty or not that would have a first down a fixed to it. Can they do so the ball just across the San Diego 45 pump fake lost the football loose in the back field and Rivers looked like he covered it up. He did. It looked like Ray Edwards coming in from the left side of your screen. He’s going to come in from the left. Philip Rivers. There’s the pump, but before he gets a chance to throw it, great job by Ray Edwards of swiping the football out of his hands. He gets around Marcus McNeel and Philip Rivers has no idea he is there. And Rivers beat Williams to the ball barely. A loss of 10. Second and 20. Play clock winding down and they call a timeout. They had to. They had guys in motion. Gates was in motion blowing up the lineup. That would have been a penalty. That is the second timeout taken here in the second half by San Diego. It has been a tumultuous third quarter. It most certainly has. We’ve had stuff happening all over. A tremendous 64 yd run by the rookie Adrien Peterson. Brought this building to its feet. They really have controlled Leenian Tomlinson and his San Diego offense. And then Brooks Ballinger finds a wideopen rookie on the other side of the field. And Rice gets a touchdown and a celebration. And right now a lot of head scratching going on with the Bolts. And keep in mind, the San Diego Chargers have been on a roll after they won their opener against Chicago. They lost three straight, then won at Denver, went home and beat Oakland and Houston. Second and 20. Rivers throws up the middle and that’s complete across midfield to Chris Chambers to the 48 yd line of the Vikings. And you know the tackle is by Marcus McCaulay, the rookie corner who’s having to play because Antoine Winfield is out. He gives the inside release to Chambers. Comes in to make the play. I’d say the Vikings had themselves a pretty good draft. Their first round pick is Peterson. He’s got a touchdown. Their second round choice, Sydney Rice. He’s got a touchdown. and their third round pick McCauley is starting and playing the whole game a quarter today. That’s a lot of production for three rookies. San Diego two out of nine on third down today. Looking at a third and four penalty marker. The pass over the middle is complete to Manu Maluna. That’s enough for a first down. But let’s check the flag. Norf doesn’t like it. Norf does not look thrilled with this call. [Applause] If you’re a body language expert, it sure looks like it’s on San Diego. Illegal formation offense 5 yd Philly third down. So that’ll back up Rivers and the Chargers to the San Diego 47. And again, you can just you can just sense a frustration in Philip Rivers every time something like this happens either. This is an offense that isn’t used to struggling like this. Look at that. More penalty yardage than rushing yardage. That’s no recipe to a win. That’s not supposed to happen when you’ve got Levaneian Tomlinson. Third and nine. Credit the guys in purple. They’re causing River steps up, throws far side of the field. Did he stay in bounds? It is ruled a catch just inside the 35 by Chris Chambers. How in the world did Philip Rivers get that ball into that area and Chambers get both feet down? Well, did he? That looks like a pretty good catch. Did he maintain control as he went across the sideline? They’re going to get a playoff 19 yd pickup. It looked like a catch. That was some effort. Rivers on the move. Looking looking, throws and completes it inside the 30 yd line to the 27 to Manuuna. Well, that was some effort by Philip Rivers. That’s a situation where you think he’s just going to throw the ball away and he ends up with a completion. That’s the end of three. 2114 Vikes back after this message and a word from your local station. This is the NFL on CBS in Minneapolis where the Vikings hold a 2114 lead on the Chargers that are on a drive as we start the fourth quarter. They are at the Minnesota 27th. We have had some big plays in this game. on second and two and a little movement up front. That looked like encroachment. Pat Williams. Encroachment. Defense number 94. 5 yd penalty. Still first down. The Vikings attempted a field goal. He returned it 19 and 3/4 yds. He almost stepped on the back line and ran it all the way home. Now on first down with Damen Tomlinson drips back inside. He goes inside the 20 to about the 17 yd line. San Diego in the midst of their longest drive of the day. This one about 63 yds and counting. It’s second and six. And I would say as far as San Diego psyche a drive that’s very much necessary. They had been sputtering and going backwards and going nowhere. This is their first productive drive in a while. Tomlinson the deep back behind Rivers on second and six. Rivers going to roll looking endzone comes up short. Vincent Jackson had outrun the coverage and Rivers bounced it to him. Third and six. [Applause] I don’t think that’s Philip Rivers strong suit. throwing on the run and uh that time he he just he had a guy but just severely underthrew it and the crowd will be into this one. San Diego you see it there three out of 10 on third down but you can see they’ve been nearly 10 yardds a drive. Rivers going to throw sideline. It is incomplete. well short of the intended receiver Vincent Jackson who was well covered and Rivers picks himself up off the deck and and that pressure kept Philip Rivers from putting putting this football where he wanted to again you can see Lorenzo O’Neal is right in front Tomlinson rather right in front of him he couldn’t step into it that ball was a good four to five yds short of where he wanted it and this will be a 36-yd field goal attempt by Nate Katy and that graphic gave you a good look at the kind of pressure Philip Rivers has been under all day. Katie’s kick on the way. Looks good. Is good. 1409. Plenty of time left to play here in the fourth quarter. The Vikings lead is 2117. [Music] Field goal by the Chargers pulls them to within 2117. Andre Allison deep for the kick from Katie. Allison will not run it out from five yds deep. So Minnesota will start from its own 20 yd line trying to protect the four-point lead. [Music] Back in the Metrodome, Minnesota’s Vikings starting from its own 20 yd line. Adrien Peterson. I wouldn’t stop handing it to him. Uh he gets the football 25 to the 30. Still on his feet. 35 and down at the 37 yd line. Just exactly what we talked about before. The guy will not go out of bounds. I mean, he is really pinned into the sideline here. I don’t It’s not in his DNA to go out of bounds. First of all, that’s sensational blocking. But right here, he he’s pinned in. No, he won’t do it. He goes back into the field to take somebody on. Man, I love the way this guy carries Cooper. I mean, nine out of Greg, nine out of 10 guys would have stepped out of bounds right there. 203 rushing yards against this terrific San Diego defense today. To the 40 midfield and into San Diego territory to the 45 yd line. Another first down. Marlon McCree brought him down. Every one of you people up there standing up applauding. I hope you appreciate what you’re watching. First of all, look at the hole. And then two missed tackles right there by the Chargers. Matt Wilhelm got knocked off by Marlon McCree. You know, Dan, that’s that that’s that intangible as Chester Taylor comes in. The great running backs make the miss. Yeah, you’re Well, absolutely right. First down now. Ballinger to throw out here into the flat and that’s complete to Taylor. Taylor inside the 40 to the 38 yd line. And how’s this for an answer by the Minnesota Vikings? Well, it depends. There are two flags down back at the line of scrimmage. The Vikings are actually holding offense number 83. 10yd penalty. Still first down. That’s on Jeff Dugan. That’s Dugan working against Shawn Marryman. And that’s a taked down. Wow. When you force a guy into a forward somersault and Marman comes right up pleading for the flags. There was a little, you know, once Marman decided to go, he went with flare and came up pleading for the laundry and got it. So now it’s first and 20. Peterson back on the field. Peterson with the hand off to midfield. And again, Luis Castillo had to leave this game with an injury. He’s their left defensive end. And it seems that uh Minnesota, who had success running the ball prior, is really grinding it away now. Clock continues to move, coming up on 1150 to play in the fourth. San Diego, you know, let’s be realistic. This is a team that was giving up 89 yards a game coming into today. They’re not used to having anybody crank it on them like this. This is Peterson. Shakes the tackler at the line of scrimmage and goes forward for another three yds before Antonio Pro Martardi makes the stop. Greg, is it just me or does the first guy seldom get this guy? Never get. Okay, you took it to the next level. He makes the first guy almost always comes up empty. Left is the favorite side for Adrien Peterson when he works. And you can see a lot more balance today. They love to go behind McKenna and Hutchinson left, but that is a really balanced run game today. Bowlinger sets up the screen. Taylor with blockers inside the 35 and out of bounds at the 32 yd line. That’s a first down for the Vikings. That was a good looking setup to a screen. All of a sudden, it looks like a jailbreak right up the middle, but totally planned. There’s a good block by Matt Burke, by Hutchinson, rather. Matt Burke is downfield and Brooks Ballinger. Yes, man. Man, I love a good-look screen. They are really, really attractive plays. So, first down for the Vikings now to the 31 of San Diego. 1020 to play in the fourth. Peterson back in the lineup. Peterson gets the call. Bounces off one tackle inside the 25 inside the 20. Lost the football picked up by the Chargers and out of bounds at the 21 yd line by Date Drayton Florence. And that is nothing more than what happens sometimes to a running back who’s giving everything and fighting and scratching for every single yard. A good hit knocked it loose. For the second time this season, Adrien Peterson has gone for over 200 yards rushing. Rivers throwing deep near sideline. Oh, what a catch made by Chris Chambers. Well, there’s the veteran against the rookie. And the veteran knew when to go up for the football. And it’s going to come back. Chris Chambers really effectively moved into position for the ball. Marcus McCauley was not able to react, but it doesn’t matter. The Chargers call for a false start. Will be assessed a 5 yd penalty and the line of scrimmage is the 16. I don’t know why all coaches aren’t bald cuz that’s where you pull your hair out right there. So, the penalty backs the Chargers up and makes it first and 15. Brad Childress obviously already did lost the football. Oh boy. For the second time today, there have been a lot of fumbles today. Well, that’s the second time that Cory Wro, the center, and Philip Rivers have not handled the exchange. Minnesota recovered the other one. This time San Diego was able to cover again. If you weren’t with us earlier, Nick Hardwick is the Pro Bowl center. But Cory Wro, I mean, this guy’s been around the league 8 years. He He’s not some rookie. He’s a former Viking. He’s a good solid football player. Second and 17. That’s LT in motion. Rivers to Tomlinson out to the 25 yd line. Darren Sharper terrific veteran safety makes the stop. And in a situation like that, that’s where LT looks like Marshall Faulk that you can split him out and turn him into a receiver. And that was a poorly thrown pass by Philip Rivers. That was a circus catch by Leenian Tomlinson. That ball was so far behind him that should have been an incompletion. Third and seven. San Diego three of 11 on third downs today. Rivers backing up. Throws Tomlinson with the catch and out of bounds. Well shy of first down yardage. Tank Williams forced him out and San Diego has to kick it away. Well, LT his momentum carrying him towards the sidelines. He really no way he could have held up short of going out. Going back to what EJ Henderson told us yesterday, third down has been killing the Vikings. They have been exceptional on third down defense today. They are trying to make a statement for Weldy Moore. Another fine kick by Ciphers. more back to his 12 to the 20 up the sideline. 40 slowed down a little bit, breaks free and now will be pulled down at the 46 yd line of the San Diego Chargers. Mike Cipher saved the play by slowing him down. [Applause] [Music] San Diego punter Mike Ciphers, should the Chargers rally to win this game, can be credited with saving a Melddy Moore punt return for a touchdown. On first down, back to Adrien Peterson in the ground game. Cuts inside a block inside the 40 up the sideline and he’s gone. [Applause] 46 yds on that scamper. 251 yds rushing on the day for the rookie from Oklahoma. [Applause] Longwell’s kick is good. I’ve been a network broadcaster for 24 years and every now and then you see a performance where you say to yourself, I’m just glad to be here. And that’s what we’re seeing here. First of all, look at the blocking. Klein Saucer out front. Take a look at the blocks by these guys. And then when you’re to the second level and you’re wearing number 28 for Minnesota, you are gone. Herrera with a really good block. Brian Cook a really good block. Matt Burks sealing it back. But once Adrien Peterson is into the second level, if he hasn’t been slowed or he hasn’t been rerouted, he is trouble. Look at the feet. Look at the cut. But if he hasn’t been rerouted, if you have not changed his course of direction, the safeties and corners in this league cannot match this guy’s speed. And yep, it’s rookie day for the Vikings. 2817. [Applause] No rookie has ever had two 200 yd game rushing. And let’s not kid ourselves, he didn’t exactly do it against a chump change defense. This San Diego defense hasn’t let anybody run the ball. And his first effort was against the Chicago Bears. Dan, let’s not kid ourselves. 300 is within reach. Yes, it is. This is Darren Sprouls. He will not run it out of the end zone. And San Diego will start from its own 20 yd line. And after this afternoon, well, there’s a pretty good running back on that other team wearing number 21. And he’s not used to having the other guy have more than 210 yards than he does. Tomlinson has 37 yds on the day on 15 carries. Pass out here. Incomplete. Completely out of sync. LT wasn’t looking for it and it was behind him anyway. Second and 10. Take a look at that. That is an extraordinary performance by Adrien Peterson. Keep in mind the NFL record for rushing yards in a game is Jamal Lewis. 295 yards back in the 03 season. Well, I think that number on the other side is pretty noteworthy as well. 37 yds. What a job this Minnesota defense is doing. Over the middle, incomplete. And right up the middle again comes the kind of pressure that a quarterback hates. EJ Henderson. Watch him right up the middle. Liieber gets picked up. Henderson is free. And once again, Philip Rivers just is ejected from the pocket. He’s right out the back door. I know this doesn’t surprise you, but every once in a while, you’ll see a game where there’s no reason in the world why the Chargers shouldn’t come in and continue on the role they’ve been in. I agree. But any given Sunday is more than just the name of a bad movie. and they have to go home next week and entertain the Indianapolis Colts. Third and 10. River on the move. Throw intercepted at the 25 yd line. Charles Gordon the secondyear defensive back out of Kansas. Again, Lesie Frasier’s defense for the Vikings forced Philip Rivers out of the pocket. He had to do a jump pass off his back foot. There goes the pocket. He’s out. Jumping backwards. Nothing on the football. Trying to force it to Antonio Gates. And a penalty marker has been dropped maybe for some excessive celebration by the Vikings, but it’s going to back Minnesota up to the San Diego 40 yd line. You know, that just gives Adrien Peterson a little more room to run. I think Moore is just not quite believing the way his team is performing and they the the defense of the Vikings here, you just cannot praise them enough what they’ve accomplished. Peterson still on his feet to the 33 yd line. And right now San Diego is going for the football. Sean Marryman was the last guy, but along the way, they’re all clawing at the football. Well, guess what, guys? I’d think about tackling the ball carrier first. While you’re clawing at the ball, he’s grinding out 8 yds. 259 yds rushing. The sixth best performance in NFL history. And he’s still working on it. Well, how many guys are are in the position, Greg? You just can’t take your eyes off of him when he gets the ball. Don’t reach for a potato chip when this guy’s running. Dan, he may get it again here. Second and two. Peterson to the outside. Penalty marker flies as he’s run out of bounds at about the 34. Holding offense number 62. 10 yd penalty. Second down. You will see a holding call a lot on a play that’s designed to go into the middle and then the running back bounces it to the outside cuz you’re trying to take your guy one way and all of a sudden he’s trying to go another way and you don’t know why because you know he sees the ball carrier as a lineman. You don’t all you know is you just don’t want him to go that way. That’s right. And you hook him and you end up getting called for holding. So the ball is backed up now to the 43 yd line. [Applause] Rivers and Gates. Well, Rivers was trying to get the ball to Antonio Gates on that last interception by Gordon. Second and 13. Coverage was just too good. And the pressure on Gates too much. Chester Taylor is in the back field. And this is Taylor. 40 35 and he’s on the go to the 25 20 inside the 15 to the 10 yd line and a first down. First and goal for Minnesota. Keep in mind this was Chester Taylor’s team until Adrien Peterson got drafted. I’d say he’s more than a capable substitute. He’s much more than that. But again, folks, that’s just unbelievable blocking. I think right there, even that was a miss right there. That touch by Marlon McCree was the first time Chester Taylor had contact with a San Diego Charger. You cannot have a ground attack like they have had today without a strong performance from the offensive line. They’re killing. This is Taylor again straight up the middle inside the five to the two. this group and boy Cook Herrera, Burke, Hutchinson, and McKini. Whoa, there a play in a football game. This is when a football team feels at its best when they’re running the football down the throat of the opposition. Well, especially when your season to this point has been the disappointment that the Viking season has to beat a good football team. Wow, Dan. I measurable what that does for your confidence. The San Diego defense gives up less than 89 yards a game rushing. Minnesota has 335 on the ground today. On second and goal, Taylor to the five and thrown back. Igor Shansky led that charge. And we have a marker down in the end zone. Well, this defense right now is missing two of their better players. They lost Luis Castillo early. You know, we lost him earlier with a leg injury. And Shawn Phillips, the linebacker, unfortunately conduct defense number 29 swinging at a player. Unsportsmanlike against Drayton Florence, the quarterback. I won’t correct myself. Sean Phillips did make the trip, but he’s not playing today with that groin heard last week. But those are two good players, but take that and put it in one place. The gashing holes that are being made in this San Diego defense by this Viking offensive line is real, man. They’re playing well. Chester Taylor, Tony Richardson in the back field behind Ballinger. Hang on, guys. And the play clock stops at eight as Mike Carrey has a conversation. God, the down marker was wrong over on the sideline. Please set the play clock to 10 seconds. 10 seconds on the play clock, please. It’s first and goal. The down marker over there said second down. Ballinger asked them to change it. They did. So, they’ll give him 10 seconds to get the ball set. Minnesota Vikings have never rushed for this many yards in a game. First and goal. Taylor left side. [Applause] [Music] [Applause] And who’s out there to greet Chester Taylor? Adrien Peterson. Darn right. [Applause] The Minnesota Vikings with four touchdowns in their last six possessions. Longwell’s kick is perfect. 428 to play in the fourth and the Vikings are putting this one away 3517. [Music] Take a look at it again. Just power running. Boy, a great block out there by Dugan. Dugan 83. And then back to the inside is Tony Richardson. When Chester goes to make his cut, there are no Chargers there. And this, you know, he had to give up a lot because of the talented rookie named Adrien Peterson. And who’s there to greet him? Number 28. Look at that. Dan, you mentioned it. It’s cool. You mentioned it to Brad Childris when we talked to him yesterday. At two and five, the way things are in the NFC, the Vikings aren’t out of anything by any stretch of the imagination. You’re two and five in the AFC. You’re in big trouble. But not I believe that not in the NFC. There could be a 9 and seven team make the playoffs in the NFC. So the Vikings are going to go to three and five. And hey, I’m telling you, this is the kind of a game you can use as a building block. And they’ve gotten a little bit of everything from everyone here today. [Music] Longwell’s kick. Scrolls on the run. It’s a one to the 20. Still on his feet across the 35 out to about the 38 yd line. 422 to play in this one. when we are done. Uh, no, in the 90s rather between the Giants and the 49ers on a Monday night that up to that point in time was the most anticipated game I think in a long, long time. This game here, I cannot recall a game where the interest is so high, I don’t care who you talk to, who you want to I don’t care if you’re talking politics, it gets around to the Colts and the Patriots. That slant is incomplete. Intended for Antonio Gates. Greg, any conversation you’re having, ultimately it winds itself back around. Well, gez, who do you like? What do you think? Uh, I can’t imagine that there’s a uh can’t imagine there are many people in America that aren’t going to be watching that game. I think if you’re talking politics in the face of Colts Patriots, you’re a little wacky anyway. Well, look at all the My Lord, look at all the subplots. Pton Manning, Tom Brady, Tony Dunie, Bill Bich. It’s It’s got it all, baby. On second and 10, Rivers out here in the flat. Tomlin Tomlinson taking the tackler head on and bouncing out of bounds at the 44. There’s uh some guys that are playing this game at a pretty high level. Uh over here, I I just don’t know what you make of that. 30 touchdowns and and two interceptions. It’s uh it’s never been seen before. It’s uh you know it’s interesting though people talking about how some of those have come after they’ve built up a big lead. I think that’s uh I think that’s grumbling. Rivers throwing and wide open at the 40 yd line and making the catch is Chris Chambers. And that was a good pass by Philip Rivers. He had the entire pocket down around his feet and legs. He was able to maintain his concentration. He has the Minnesota secondary defending deep and Chambers curled back underneath and he’s had the Minnesota defensive line and linebackers draped over him a lot today. Rivers pumps going to go deep. Vincent Jackson at the goal line tipped up. Incomplete. McCaulay the rookie was there along with Darren Sharper the veteran. I think Philip Rivers is trying to make a statement here that maybe this game isn’t over yet. They could get down here and stuff one in, get to 35. They could go for two and get it to 10 points, you know, all of a sudden you’d have a you’d have a long way to go, but hey, it’s this is the NFL. Greg, you’re doing math again. I’ve seen strange things happen. Oh, I know. It’s just math. That’d be a two-p possession game. Second and 10. That’s the way if you’re in a white shirt, you have to think. Rivers throws sideline pass and that’s complete. Casim Ozgood with his first catch of the day. And that’s a 14 yd gain and another first down for the Chargers with 331 to play. The Viking defense has had Rivers on the run all afternoon long. Well, it’s because one of the big reasons is San Diego has not been able to run the ball on first down. Quick pass. That’s complete. And once again, it’s Ozgood. And Ozgood to about the 16 yd line. I mean, we all knew that the Minnesota defense, Lesie Fraser, their defensive corner, we know how good they are against the run, but did anybody think that at this point in time of the game, the Chargers would have 37 yds rushing? No, not me. Here’s LT. LT can’t quite get started. Just inside the 15 to the 13. Ketchi Uza makes the stop. Under three minutes to play without a huddle, Philip Rivers tries to get this group moving [Applause] [Music] from the 14. Rivers short pass. That’s complete. Tomlinson. Boy, a good a good tackle by Charles Gordon. secondyear player. That was a good hit. Took the legs right out from underneath LT. Under 220 to play. Rivers has it batted back into his face. Incomplete. Let’s see if that was big Kevin Williams. Number 93. Williams. Ooh. Well, it’s it’s your instinct as a defensive lineman. If you’re well trained, it’s your instinct. And that was a good look at Kevin Williams. He was able to look right into the eyes of Philip Rivers. He was able to track his entire throwing motion and get his hands up. I wouldn’t say he elevated a great deal, but he got his hands up. Third and six. Here come the Vikings. The pass goal line and that is incomplete. Knocked down. Antonio Gates, the intended receiver. Boy, Gates came up imploring the official on the side to give him the flag. He’s still pleading his case. [Applause] Oh, that’s good. Good cut. I think he’s talking about the face mask. I think at the very end of the play when the ball’s getting swatted away, I think the hand goes across the face mask. Cedric Griffin, but that happened so fast, it’s easy to see why the official didn’t see it. Fourth and six. Rivers on the move. On the move looking, throws into the end zone. But it is tipped and complete. And the ball goes over to Minnesota. Cedric Griffin got up to get a hand on it. [Applause] Well, Leenian Tomlinson on the left, Philip Rivers on the right. Were in a much better mood when we saw them at dinner Friday night than they are here today. Dan, tough. tough day. You You look at the numbers and you’re going, “Can they really be true?” This is Peterson. Look at Peterson. 30 down the sideline and just pulled from behind and the penalty marker is down. Wow. That might be a horse collar tackle. [Applause] That might be a horse collar tackle. and he had a conversation with Brad Childris about whether about whether to stay in the game or not and he is personal foul deepens number 20 horse collar on the runner 15 yd penalty automatic first down so that moves the ball even further 35 yd pickup on the play and that’s it for that’s I Peterson wanted to stay in and Brad children said no he sent in Chester Taylor. He is 2 yards shy of an NFL record. And I wonder if Brad Childress knows that. Man, you got to let him back in. 10yd per carry average. Coach, you got to play him. Chester Taylor takes the handoff. Taylor inside 35 to the 33. And Adrien Peterson. Adrien Peterson, as Greg said, is back in the game. Dan, is there anyone in the building who doesn’t know that Adrien Peterson is going to get this hand off? Well, I guarantee you right now the Chargers, they don’t want it to happen here. Peterson to the 30. [Applause] Clock continues to move at 53 52 51 seconds. Let’s see how much they give him on the play. They give him three on the play. That gives him 296 for the day. Well, I wouldn’t want anybody to revise this and take one back. I I try to get a couple more just to be safe. That’s the second NFL record set that we have seen here today. And they’re going to kneel on the ball. [Applause] How about the performance by number 28 of the Minnesota Vikings? Our final score 3517 Vikings for Dan Deerforf, Greg Gumbles along for Minneapolis. This has been the NFL on CBS. [Applause]
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27 comments
Adrian Peterson was different man, truly one of the best to ever do it!
AP & LT! Greats💯🤝🏾.
The fact that this game has the league's first 109 yard touchdown in it and it's not even the most notable thing about it is incredible
Love seeing all these guys from Madden 08. Except for the hardest hitting safety in da league 😅
Shout out to William Montgomery in the beginning.
Let go Vikings
Let's go Chargers I remember watching this game too this was when Cromartie returned the missed field goal before Halftime 👍
I remember this game. AP was just built different.
Cromartie and Peterson!!
Rest in peace Tarvaris Jackson.
Thanks for the memories. Awesome game. I hope to see more classics consistently uploaded. 🙂
Yall got so many commercials you cant really even watch the video!
AP was such a stupid freak in fantasy he was like #1 for so many years him and LT dominated #1 pick in 2000s – bears fan
I didn't know AP broke NFL Record as a rookie.
His nickname is AD not "AP"… They called him "all day" because since he was a child he could run all day
After the third full double ads in the first six minutes, I will stop watching. Bye.
Stop interrupting my commercials with a game!
I miss our days of having a good running game
Adrian Peterson, a great running back and a awful father.
Miss u Greg Gumbel
U were Jim Nantz B4 Jim Nantz
Why couldn't it have been Ian & Nepotism Noah Eagle
I watched this game and played poker with him th next off season. He’d always be at Canterbury park. I never realized his yards were basically all in 2nd half
I rather watch #7 SON ⚽️.
It's power of KIMCHEE. 👍
The Chargers defense had no answers at all. Pure domination.
Please post some vintage Drew Breese games)
Sam Diego chargers
Really enjoying these 4K throwback games. Good call NFL!
There is no QB at Chargers
Just FYI for people who came to see AP…just skip to the second half. He only had 43 rushing yards in the first half