The first person to rush for over 100 yards in the new season was Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch on Thursday.
The second? Some guy that goes by "Flash." Oh yeah, he's a wide receiver too. Vikings wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson constantly says he's a playmaker. And once again, he backed it up with an eye-popping run play.
Patterson silenced the crowd in the third quarter on the first play of the drive with a 67-yard touchdown run. We've seen it before from Patterson last season where he'll turn a halfback toss into six points but this one might've been the most impressive.
The wide receiver broke through six tackles, weaving his way from right sideline to the left, and dragged rookie cornerback E.J. Gaines into the endzone.
"When I get the ball in my hands, I want to be special," Patterson said. "Running that run play, I think I'm 3-for-3 now in two years. Coach says nobody runs that play like we, the Minnesota Vikings do. It's special to be back there."
Patterson finished with three carries for 102 rushing yards, a nice 34 yards per attempt. He became the first wide receiver in franchise history to rush for over 100 yards. Patterson also tied the franchise record for most rushing touchdowns (4) by a wide receiver with Percy Harvin. He had three catches for 26 yards.
Patterson credited nine of his teammates for setting up blocks, specifically pointing out the offensive line and wide receiver Adam Thielen for chipping defensive tackle Michael Brockers 62 yards away from the line of scrimmage, but Patterson left out one player.
"I know Matt [Cassel] probably don't block for me," Patterson said. "But the other nine guys do a heck of a job blocking for me and leading me on."
