Funny, but nobody in Minnesota is laughing after the Vikings fell to 0-3 with a 31-27 loss to Cleveland, who kept Peterson in check and forced the game into Christian Ponder's hands.
The Vikings quarterback ran for a pairof scores, but he couldn't get out from under the Browns' defense, which rolled up six sacks and hit Ponder another eight times. He was lustily booed by the home crowd, something Peterson called unfair, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
"I got his back," Peterson said of Ponder. "He scored two touchdowns and kept us in the game. They were cheering him when he scored and booing him when a pass wasn't as good as they wanted it."
Peterson couldn't save the day, either, with just 88 yards on 25 carries. A.P. now has 68 attempts for 203 yards (and just 2.9 yards per rush) since his 78-yard touchdown burst to open Week 1. The schedule softens with the Steelers, Panthers and Giants up next, but everyone on the planet assumed Cleveland would lay down and hand the Vikings an easy win.
That didn't happen, leaving the fine people of Minnesota -- including the offspring of a superstar runner -- to wonder when they'll finally taste victory.
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