Bradford completed 22/31 passes for 286 yards, two touchdowns, but most importantly, no turnovers.
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Peterson suffered a devastating left knee injury in 2011 – tearing both his ACL and MCL ligaments – only to bounce back and rush for 2,097 yards in the 2012 regular season. Chicago is looking to bounce back from a 23-14 road loss to the Texans in its season opener.
However, even if things go down after a successful field goal attempt the way they did after McCarthy’s botched fourth down gamble, the Rodgers rushing TD ties the game up again at 17 rather than only bringing the Packers to within three.
Who could have imagined that Sam Bradford, in his first start for the Vikings, would outduel Rodgers?
The quarterback, acquired September 3 from Philadelphia, completed 22 of 31 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns in a 17-14 win over Green Bay in the first regular-season game at U.S. Bank Stadium. Zimmer said Vikings will know more after Peterson undergoes an MRI exam Monday.
“To get that first touchdown, it meant a lot”, Bradford said.
Sunday night at U.S. Bank Stadium was filled with all sorts of bells and whistles as the Vikings opened up a brand new stadium with a win. “The next man up has got to step up and the coaches have trust in Jerick (McKinnon) and I to fill in for Adrian, and we are going to do that”. Bradford was due to come in and struggle, throw a few picks and get ransacked by the Packers defense. His favorite target was Stefon Diggs, who had nine catches for 182 yards and a touchdown.
Minnesota held the Packers to 65 total yards in the first half, withstanding an early touchdown pass by Rodgers to Jordy Nelson on a drive aided by two penalties on cornerback Terence Newman.
In the NFC East, Washington seemed like the clear-cut favorite to win the division after retaining Kirk Cousins and shoring up the defense in free agency. Mike Daniels played like a man possessed. Playing what he described as “school-yard ball” after falling behind big that day, Rodgers almost rallied the Packers with four touchdowns and 369 yards.
Not that it was easy, as Rodgers almost erased a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit against a Minnesota defense that kept him uncomfortable for most of the night.
Diggs scored Minnesota’s only second-half touchdown, with Bradford putting the right touch on a 25-yard floater over the top of the Green Bay secondary.
For example, the defending champion Broncos look just as good starting second-year, seventh-round pick Trevor Siemian at quarterback as they did with Peyton Manning. He later hopped off the field with help from medical assistance and had to practically be carried to the locker room.
PATS NEED A SUB FOR THE SUB: Rookie QB Jacoby Brissett’s first National Football League start could come this week, when he might be called upon to sub for the suspended Tom Brady’s sub, the injured Jimmy Garoppolo, in the New England Patriots’ game Thursday against the Houston Texans and old friend Bill O’Brien.
“We won, and at the end of the day, that’s all that matters”, Bradford said, acknowledging that Diggs made a huge difference.
After the game Sunday night, Peterson was wearing a brace on his right leg and using crutches.
“That dude is one tough (expletive)”, Vikings guard Alex Boone told USA Today.
“Whatever it was, it’s calmed down now, so we’ll see”, Zimmer said postgame.
Davante Adams fumbled at his own 13 on Green Bay’s first play, a short completed pass, when Eric Kendricks punched the ball out and Andrew Sendejo picked it up with an eye toward the end zone. Andrew Sendejo recovered the ball for the Vikings inside the Packers 20 yard line, but coughed the ball back up to the Packers’ Randall Cobb. Each team was charged with a turnover because of the change of possession.
For however long Peterson is out, assuming he does miss some time, McKinnon and Asiata would likely split the workload much the same way they did two years ago. But they would never get their turn. Sunday, they lost defensive tackle Letroy Guion to a knee injury in the second quarter.
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