Through six weeks of the NFL season, the leading rusher is a rookie. A rookie with 780 totals yards and 5 touchdowns. All told, Adrian Peterson has better stats in his rookie year, than most guys can hope for in the prime of their careers. I am still not really sure whether or not Peterson has been made the starter, but if he hasn’t Brad Childress should not be a head coach in the NFL. Sunday, against the BEARS defense, Peterson rushed for 224 yards, and three touchdowns on 20 carries. For those of us who aren’t math majors, that’s 11.2 yards per carry. And to show just how valuable he is to the Vikings, AP also returned a kickoff to the Bears 40 yard line, which set up a last second game winning field goal.



Still don’t think this kid is the best rookie in a long time? If he keeps this up, Peterson will be the best running back in the league this year. Running backs are known to have shorter primes in the NFL, but most don’t have Pro Bowl seasons in their rookie year. For everyone who thinks that Darren McFadden is the best thing since sliced bread, Peterson was better in college as a freshman, than McFadden is now. If not for the injury that kept him out most of his sophomore season, Peterson could have been one of the best college backs of all time.

The inevitable comparison is Peterson and Reggie Bush. Let me take a minute to tell you why Bush was never really that great of an all around back, and yes, I did say that during his last year at SC. In high school and college, Bush ran back and forth, and around people. That made for impressive video on rivals, but not for an impressive career in the NFL. Bush has always been a glorified third down back who is slower than most at returning kicks. Without Lendale White at USC, Bush never wins the Heisman. Adrian Peterson has the moves and always has. Peterson has Willie Parker speed, with LT moves, and Larry Johnson power. Can anyone say beast?



Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Adrian Peterson is not the second coming of Barry Sanders or Jim Brown, at least not yet. However, he is one of the best rookie backs I have ever seen. He is putting up numbers that are ridiculous for any player. And Adrian Peterson has put the Minnesota Vikings on his back, and is carrying them. Most of the TV experts expected the Vikings to win 1 or 2 games all season. Mostly because of Peterson (Certainly not Tavaris Jackson) The Vikings already have those 2 wins through five games. What if this guy had half a team around him?