Thirty-four years young, Adrian Peterson made moves through the Minnesota secondary and up the record books on Thursday night.
Peterson moved into sixth on the all-time rushing yards list during Washington's 19-9 loss to the Vikings on Thursday, passing Hall of Fame running backs Jerome Bettis and LaDainian Tomlinson in the process.
The Redskins running back passed Tomlinson (13,684 yards) with a 29-yard run in the third quarter; Peterson passed Bettis earlier in the evening. He entered the game with 13,625 rushing yards on his career. Peterson ended the game with 76 yards, boosting his career tally to 13,701 yards.
"It means a lot," Peterson said of the milestone. "I came into this game expecting to climb in the ladder. These guys that I'm passing are the ones that paved the way for me, Bettis, L.T.
"To look up at the screen and to see I passed those guys, it's humbling, but this is what I set forth to accomplish."
Thursday night marked only Peterson's second game back in Minnesota since leaving the franchise that drafted him in 2007. The Vikings made sure to celebrate their former star's accomplishment.
During the final two-minute warning, the patrons at U.S. Bank Stadium gave Peterson a standing ovation when alerted to his latest feat. The gesture moved the veteran Peterson, almost to tears.
"It was special," Peterson told reporters after the game. "Obviously, it was bittersweet because you come here to win a game but just coming back and seeing the love that they still have for me and they showed, it felt good. It was definitely a great home welcome. They welcomed me with open arms and just showed the love that they have and they had for over a decade.
"So it was a special moment. I had to hold tears back, to be honest with you. But yeah, it was special, it was a special moment."
Peterson was so comfortable back in Minneapolis that he told reporters he caught himself whistling the Vikings' "Skol" chant to himself at times during Washington's loss.
"I was here for a decade," Peterson said. "Some things are kind of triggers."
Next up for Peterson on the all-time rushing list: New York Jets great Curtis Martin, who finished his career fifth with 14,101 yards. Peterson is 401 yards away from passing that Hall of Famer. At his current pace, A.D. could pass Martin by season's end.
