Vikings' Peterson makes the most of downtime

By CHIP SCOGGINS and JUDD ZULGAD, Star Tribune

Last update: November 12, 2008 - 3:58 AM

Vikings running back Adrian Peterson began his postgame news conference Sunday with a one-word statement before taking questions.

"Tired," he said, smiling.

Two days after tying his career high with 30 carries in a 28-27 victory against the Green Bay Packers, Peterson said his body "is feeling pretty good."

Peterson and his mother, Bonita Jackson, took part in a charity event Tuesday sponsored by Campbell's Chunky Soup that benefits Second Harvest Heartland. Vikings coach Brad Childress gave his team two days off after the victory, which Peterson appreciated after carrying his team with 192 rushing yards Sunday.

"We had a Victory Monday so I had time to sit back and relax and let my body rest," Peterson said.

Peterson's 30 carries match the total from his record- setting performance against San Diego last season when he rushed for an NFL-record 296 yards. He also tied his career high with 33 touches Sunday (he also caught three passes). He had 29 carries and four receptions against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 2 this season.

The corner situation

A day after the Vikings put in an unsuccessful waiver claim on cornerback Leigh Torrence -- the Saints were awarded his rights because they have a worse record -- it was unclear if the Vikings would pursue cornerback Justin Miller. Released by the Jets on Tuesday, Miller also was a Pro Bowl kick returner in 2006.

A second-round pick by the Jets in 2005, Miller dealt with injury problems the past two seasons. Miller had played in a total of three games over the past two seasons after appearing in all 16 games in 2005 and 2006.

The Vikings, meanwhile, still have an available roster spot after placing cornerback and punt returner Charles Gordon on injured reserve because of a serious injury to his left leg suffered Sunday.

Benny Sapp is expected to assume Gordon's role in the nickel (five defensive backs) defense, at least for Sunday's game against Tampa Bay.

Moving up

Childress is a much more popular guy these days -- at least judging by ESPN.com's approval ratings for NFL head coaches.

A month ago, Childress found himself last with an 8 percent approval rating from fans. And that came after a 12-10 victory against Detroit moved the Vikings into a first-place tie in the NFC North with Chicago and Green Bay.

This week Childress' rating has climbed up to 36 percent (1,162), putting him ahead of 11 coaches.

Etc.

• The Vikings lead the NFL with 11 touchdowns on plays of 20-plus yards.

• Peterson has been nominated for the FedEx ground player of the week award. Peterson won the honor last week after rushing for 139 yards against Houston. The honor is voted on by fans.

• Peterson has four consecutive 100-yard rushing performances, one shy of Robert Smith's team record set in 2000.

• The Vikings' struggles on special teams have been well-documented, but they have made significant improvement in kickoff coverage. They allowed 26.0 yards per kickoff return in their first four games, which ranked 27th in the NFL. Their average dropped to 20.2 yards per kickoff the past five games, which ranks fourth in the NFL in a span of six weeks.