Adrian Peterson vs. the Lions (29 runs, 134 yards; 2 catches, 58 yards)

One of the biggest stories this offseason for the Vikings was the return of Adrian Peterson. Rumors flew all offseason about whether or not he would be back, and there was some question of how well he would play after missing almost all of 2014. His performance in Week 1 against the 49ers was certainly not what Vikings fans had hoped it would be, as he only got 10 carries and looked uncomfortable running out of the shotgun. However, he looked completely different during the team’s Week 2 game against the Lions, and showed that he still has the potential to be the dynamic runner that nearly broke the single season rushing record just three seasons ago. Peterson does not appear to be at full strength yet, but if he plays just this well for the rest of the season he’s going to put up very respectable numbers.

Peterson had 29 carries and two receptions last Sunday, but not all of them are particularly notable. As such, I won’t cover every single play. For the most part, I’m excluding shorter gains where either the defense did a nice job plugging the hole, a defender made a nice tackle, or the play was simply unremarkable. As such, I have 13 plays that I’m going over. They show Peterson’s best and worst runs of the day, as well as his big reception.

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at the plays:

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2-10-MIN 25 (Q1, 14:26) A.Peterson left tackle to MIN 36 for 11 yards (G.Quin, E.Ansah)

On the first play the Vikings ran from scrimmage, Peterson had to fight back to the line of scrimmage for a gain of zero. On the next play, Peterson got his first big gain of the day. This play is relatively simple, as the Vikings are running inside zone. They have Matt Kalil and Kyle Rudolph kick out the defensive ends, and the guys in the middle combo block defensive tackles before moving up to the second level. It’s Peterson’s job to read the play and choose which hole to go through.

Before the snap, the Vikings also sent WR Jarius Wright in motion towards the right side of the formation (from this angle, it’s to the left). This pulled three players in that direction, safeties Glover Quin and James Ihedigbo as well as LB Stephen Tulloch. This is very important because it caused the Lions to abandon their gap responsibilities. The running gaps are the spaces between the offensive linemen, lettered from inside out. So, the space between the center and the guard is the A gap, while the space between the guard and tackle is the B gap. On defense, each player in the front seven is responsible for a gap (some defenses are “two gap” defenses that ask their DTs to cover two gaps, but the Lions do not).

On this play, because both Ihedigbo and Tulloch moved with the WR motion, one of them abandoned the B gap on the left side (#93 Tyrunn Walker was responsible for the A gap on that side, and Ziggy Ansah was responsible for the C gap). Matt Kalil did a good job of kicking out the DE, and the combo on Walker was effective, which left a big hole for Peterson to run through. He hits it hard, and essentially gets 8 free yards. From Peterson, it’s nice to see explosion through the hole, and it’s also great to see his finish to the run. He got 8 yards free, but he had to work for the last three, lowering his pads into contact and driving forward to pick up extra yardage. That’s a hallmark of his.

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1-10-DET 45 (Q1, 13:17) (No Huddle) A.Peterson right guard pushed ob at DET 20 for 25 yards (D.Slay).

This play is another inside zone run, and it’s well blocked by the Vikings again. While good, the blocking is not perfect. There’s kind of a pileup on the right side of the line (left side from the camera angle). Peterson does a good job of working through the trash and not letting himself get tripped up.

There’s another positive aspect for Peterson on this play: his vision. For RBs, there are two levels of vision. The first level is their initial read. On this play, Peterson essentially has a choice of going left or right when he’s handed the ball. He goes to his right, which is the correct decision because there’s an unblocked safety on the other side. The second level of vision is what a player does once he’s hit the hole and is in the second level of the defense. Conceptually, defenses have “force” defenders against run plays that are meant to contain the runner from getting outside and breaking a big run down the sideline. If a play gets to the second level, the CB on that side is supposed to be the force defender. However, on this play, #23 Darius Slay gets overaggressive and goes too far inside. Peterson sees this and immediately capitalizes on it, kicking his run outside and giving Mike Wallace a great angle to block Slay at.

After kicking the run outside, Peterson uses his excellent speed and acceleration to break a long run. Since the blocking was good, the play would have been a success anyway, but Peterson’s vision on the second level turned what might have been a 7 or 8 yard gain into a 25 yard one. From this play, it’s clear that Peterson hasn’t lost his ability to see the open field despite it being a year since he’s played live football.

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1-10-50 (Q1, 2:24) (Shotgun) A.Peterson left guard to DET 41 for 9 yards (P.Hunt).

Peterson struggled when running from shotgun against the 49ers. He looked significantly improved in that area against the Lions, although his best runs did come when he was running from the traditional depth. On this play, his blocking on the frontside fails him and he almost gets stuffed. He’s heading to the left when he gets the ball, and his options don’t look too bright. Daryl Tapp is right in his face, Rashean Mathis is there if he tries to kick it outside, and Josh Bynes is in his potential cutback lane. However, the interior blocking was pretty solid, and Peterson is able to use his agility and acceleration to make something out of the play.

First, he makes Tapp miss, which isn’t the easiest thing to do in the world. Peterson has the ability to stop and turn on a dime, which is pretty rare for a player of his size. Then, he’s able to accelerate and run around the entire offensive line and into the secondary. Finally, he hits the defenders hard and falls forward for a gain of 9 on first and 10, which puts the Vikings in great position.

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2-1-DET 41 (Q1, 1:59) A.Peterson up the middle to DET 35 for 6 yards (G.Quin).

Peterson’s success on this play is an example of his ability with a little help from the defense. The Vikings come out in a run heavy formation and the Lions put 8 in the box to counter. The run call is “Power,” which is a probably the most common run with a man blocking scheme. Man blocking means that each offensive player is assigned to block a specific defensive player. “Power” has a guard (in this case LG Brandon Fusco) pull across the formation to be a lead blocker for the RB through the hole (the intended hole on this play is the right side C gap, or between the RT and TE).

The Lions do a good job of stuffing the hole, and Peterson is met with a wall of human flesh in front of him. There would be a potential cutback lane to his left, but a safety is filling it. Thus, his only option is to kick this run outside. As I said before, on running plays there is a defender who is tasked with containing the run to prevent it from going outside the numbers. On this play, that is #52 Tapp. TE Rhett Ellison is a very good run blocker, and on this play he does enough to prevent Tapp from getting his hands on Peterson. Tapp needed to get just a bit further upfield to have an effect on this play. However, this play shows that Peterson has the speed necessary to get to the edge of the defense on run plays, which is definitely a positive.

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1-10-MIN 20 (Q2, 7:12) (Shotgun) A.Peterson left tackle to MIN 24 for 4 yards (J.Ihedigbo).

#94 Ziggy Ansah is a great pass rusher, and this run exploits his aggressive pass rush tendencies. This play is actually supposed to go up the middle, but C Joe Berger got pushed back by Haloti Ngata immediately at the snap. With the CB incoming from the right, Peterson needs to go left, and Ansah has gotten too far upfield, so there is a nice hole for him to run through. Once Peterson gets through the hole, he needs to make a decision on where to go with the football, and he makes the wrong one. Peterson essentially has three options, as illustrated by this still:

The first one, cutting it back to the right, is obviously out of the question because of the backside pursuit. So, his choice is really between trying to power through Ihedigbo or run around the edge, where Mike Wallace is blocking Mathis. Peterson chooses to try to kick the run outside. Based on how RBs are typically taught to read plays, this is the wrong decision. You probably also noticed that I circled the helmets of Mathis and Wallace. RBs are taught to read the helmets of their blockers and the defenders they are blocking. You want to choose the side with your guy’s helmet, because he’s in better position to block in that direction. From the still, their helmets appear to be pretty level, but from Peterson’s angle Mathis has the advantage if he tries to kick it around the edge. Peterson tries anyway, and Mathis is able to contain, which forces Peterson to try to turn back upfield to the direction he should have run in the first place. Ihedigbo makes the tackle for a modest gain of four. My favorite part of the play, however, comes after the play is over. Peterson angrily slams the ball and his fist to the ground. This shows that Peterson not only understands he made the wrong decision, but he’s mad that he left yards on the field. An angry, aggressive mentality is, in my opinion, a great thing for a runner to have, and Peterson certainly displays it here.

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3-2-MIN 28 (Q2, 6:04) T.Bridgewater pass short middle to A.Peterson pushed ob at DET 23 for 49 yards (D.Slay) (K.Van Noy).

This play is the only pass play I have to show, and it lets us see both good and bad in the pass game from Peterson. The bad came first. Off the play action fake, he is wholly unprepared to deal with Van Noy, the blitzing LB. He’s flat footed and actually bent backwards on initial contact, which pretty much means he’s already lost. Van Noy blows him back and disengages easily, heading for Teddy Bridgewater.

Peterson and Bridgewater combine on a heads up play to save this from being a disaster. Adrian almost immediately makes himself available as a pass target for Bridgewater. Bridgewater is able to stay on his feet long enough to get a flip off to Peterson. When Peterson gets the ball, he spins really quickly and immediately sprints upfield. He outruns Tapp and then no one is there to stop him for about 50 yards. A heads up play was able to turn a drive killing sack into a huge gain to put the Vikings in scoring position.

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1-6-DET 6 (Q3, 13:37) (Shotgun) A.Peterson left tackle to DET 8 for -2 yards (J.Ihedigbo). FUMBLES (J.Ihedigbo), RECOVERED by DET-J.Wilson at DET 11.

Remember a couple of plays ago, when I said aggressiveness was a great trait for RBs? Well, I should add a caveat to that. Peterson might very well be the most aggressive RB in the NFL, and sometimes his aggressiveness works against him. When a player fumbles, it’s rarely because of the first contact. Defensive players are taught to wrap up the ball carrier first, and then if they’re the second player there to try to punch the ball out. This is what happens here, as Tulloch wraps up Peterson’s leg and then Ihedigbo punches the ball out. It’s important to note, too, that at the time the ball is knocked out Peterson is trying to drag Tulloch for extra yards. Because he’s focusing on that, he’s not paying enough attention to the football, and it gets punched out.

Aggressive play is great. Fighting to break tackles and for yards after contact are how guys like Marshawn Lynch (and Adrian Peterson) break off huge runs. However, that effort should not come at the expense of ball security. Peterson struggled with ball security early in his career, but had appeared to improve significantly in recent years. With almost a year off, he could be not used to the live contact still, and might be in a readjustment period right now. Vikings fans should hope so, at least.

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1-10-DET 22 (Q3, 10:59) A.Peterson left end pushed ob at DET 11 for 11 yards (R.Mathis).

On this play, the Vikings have the entire line block down to the right, and leave Mathis unblocked. The intent is to give Peterson a one-on-one in open space against the CB, which you would expect Adrian to win. However, LB Josh Bynes does a good job of reading the play and not getting fooled by the OL. He goes against the grain and tries to make a play on Peterson. This play showcases something else Peterson does well: pressing the line of scrimmage. Instead of running at the edge immediately when he gets the ball, he runs towards the line of scrimmage, on a path to intersect with the WR blocking. Since Bynes reads the play correctly, this works out very well for Peterson because the line Bynes takes makes him run directly into the WR, which effectively takes him out of the play. Had Peterson not pressed the line, Bynes would have been able to work his way around the WR and stopped Peterson at the edge for a minimal gain. Instead, Peterson has a lot of room to run around Mathis, and gains a first down off of it.

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1-1-DET 1 (Q3, 9:05) A.Peterson right tackle to DET 1 for no gain. PENALTY on DET-J.Jones, Defensive Offside, 0 yards, enforced at DET 1 - No Play.

This fumble didn’t go in the box score because the play was negated by penalty, but it brings up the ball security issue once again. Peterson is simply holding the ball too far away from his body. In a goal line situation like this, taking care of the ball is the highest priority, and Peterson simply doesn’t do it. Now, Tulloch does appear to hit the ball with the crown of his helmet, so I’d imagine that’s really hard to keep control of at that point, but Peterson simply needs to hold onto the football in these situations.

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1-10-DET 21 (Q4, 10:28) A.Peterson left tackle to DET 12 for 9 yards (R.Mathis).

So far, we’ve seen Peterson run with great agility, burst, and vision. What makes him a truly special runner is he has those three elements and then also displays amazing power. This play is by no means a spectacular showing of that power, but he shows some. First, he runs straight through #50 Tahir Whitehead’s arm like it is almost nothing. Then, when Mathis grabs him he continues to fight forward. He’s slowed down some, and when Ihedigbo gets there he’s taken down, but it still shows a little bit of power.

There were some better displays of power on shorter runs, but there were now runs that showed the Herculean strength that Peterson has displayed in the past. In this game against the Lions, he simply didn’t need it.

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2-18-DET 18 (Q4, 7:47) A.Peterson left guard to DET 15 for 3 yards (J.Ihedigbo). FUMBLES (J.Ihedigbo), and recovers at DET 14. A.Peterson to DET 14 for no gain (R.Mathis).

On this play, I don’t think Peterson ever cleanly received the handoff. If he did cleanly receive it, this is terrible ball security, because he has both hands on the football. Not that bobbling the handoff would be a good thing, but I think it’s more easily correctable, especially with repitition. Three fumbles in a single game is unacceptable from a RB. This is something that Peterson will absolutely need to fix.

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1-10-DET 48 (Q4, 1:47) A.Peterson right end to DET 29 for 19 yards (D.Slay).

The Vikings are up by 10 with less than two minutes left in the game, so they just want to run out the clock, which they can do with a first down. They are equipped to stop an interior run, but once again lose edge contain. Peterson kicks it outside, and outruns Slay to get the yardage for the first down. He also displays situational awareness, but not before showcasing his trademark aggressiveness, stiff arming Slay and then falling forward when he eventually decides to go down. That actually brings me to another point. It might seem like a small thing, but it can make a huge difference. Peterson always tries to fall forward. You rarely see him falling backwards with the ball, and you don’t see it in any of these plays. There are a number where he goes out of bounds, but he’s always looking to fall forward, and he’s usually successful at it because he understands how to lower his pad level to get leverage. This is great because at around 6 feet, he’s two yards tall, so he’s adding on an extra yard or two at the end of most of his runs, which really adds up.

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After a disappointing performance in the season opener against the 49ers, Adrian Peterson turned it up in Week 2 against the Lions, and showed that he still has the skill to be an excellent RB on the NFL level. He was not perfect, but there were a number of positive traits that he displayed often, including great aggression, acceleration and agility, and usually good vision. He didn’t get many opportunities to showcase his power, and also struggled heavily with ball control, so he still has things to work on. However, considering it had been almost a calendar year since he’d suited up for a real football game, he might just need some time to shake off the rust and get back into being the most ferocious runner in the NFL.