by Cory Dellenbach - Shawano Leader Sports Editor - sports@shawanoleader.com

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Peterson has turned into a rookie phenom

Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is multi-talented.

“I'm all right (at playing pool), I won't be on ESPN with any of those guys,” Peterson said. “I can dance a little bit, I can do a little bit of Michael Jackson.”

But what is Peterson the best at? Running.

“He's clearly one of the better players I've seen come into this league in my 15 years in the NFL,” said Packers head coach Mike McCarthy. “He has a chance to take the ball the distance every time he touches it.”

In just the last four weeks alone, the rookie has piled up 653 yards.

“When I was a kid I always had so much energy and was running around all the time and I'm

still doing that,” Peterson said.

This week the Packers will get their second try at the purple runner, who was chosen by the Vikings in the first round of the draft.

“We did a good job against him. He had two that got out of the gate on us in the first half,” McCarthy said. “San Diego was doing a nice job on him also. All of sudden there's seven, eight minutes left in the game and it's a 17-14 ball game and he takes off. That's what the great runners do. They wear you down and when they do get an opportunity to finish the run, they do. That was very evident in the San Diego game. We have to focus on what we do.”

Last week against the San Diego Chargers, Peterson had 30 touches for 296 yards. Against the Chicago Bears three weeks before he rushed for 224 yards on 20 carries.

“I do believe that he is going to get better and better and obviously he'll have to do it with the five guys that are in front of him, the number of touches, how much course integrity he has,” said Vikings head coach Brad Childress.

Prior to the season, Peterson set a goal for himself - 1,800 rushing yards, but after his performance against the Chargers, he is now on pace to record 2,072 yards. That mark would easily surpass the NFL's rookie rushing record of 1,808 yards set by Eric Dickerson in 1983.

So far this season, Peterson has 1,036 yards on 158 attempts.

Last time against the Packers, Peterson had 12 carries for 112 yards.

Peterson said he's not surprised by the season he's having.

“I was coming into a good situation,” Peterson said. “Knowing that if I just continue to work hard, continue to do the things I've been doing, anything would be possible.”

He's on the right path to attaining the goals he set for himself at the start of the year.

“I definitely wanted to win the rookie of the year, I wanted to do that as far as personal goals,” Peterson said. “The other goal was just to go out there and just establish my all around game as far as passing attack and run.”

Several Packers defensive players have taken notice of the talent running back.

“I haven't seen anybody like that as a rookie come in and do what he's doing,” said Packers cornerback Al Harris.

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