Adrian Peterson put the NFL on notice — if it wasn’t already — with his seventh consecutive 100-yard game on Sunday. But now he’s adding a legendary running back to that list, too.
Peterson is currently chasing Eric Dickerson‘s single-season rushing record, a point he made well known after the Vikings’ win on Sunday. And even with just three games and more than 500 yards still between he and the record, Peterson believes Dickerson should be sweating.
During an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday, Peterson was asked about the possibility of breaking the longstanding mark and if he thought Dickerson should be “nervous” about it.
“I do,” Peterson said. “I think so.”
His answers were short, sweet and seemed to indicate no disrespect toward Dickerson. But Peterson’s overwhelming confidence could be felt even in his very direct responses.
Peterson leads the NFL with 1,600 yards rushing through 13 games, more than 330 more than the next closest challenger Marshawn Lynch, and is on pace for 1,969 come season’s end. It will take an extraordinary effort, including averaging better than 168 yards per game, for Peterson to reach Dickerson’s historic 2,105-yard mark.
Then again, Peterson, who’s played the entire season on a surgically repaired left knee, has averaged north of 157 yards per game during his current seven-game streak, so the record is by no means out of the question. That’s more than enough reason for Dickerson to fret over the final three weeks.
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