NFL notebook: Facing Adrian Peterson a tall task for Texans
BY Associated Press
Thursday, December 20, 2012
12/20/12 at 4:56 AM
The Houston Texans can't help but be impressed by what Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is accomplishing this season.
On Sunday when they face the Vikings, the Texans want to make sure they aren't on the wrong end of history. Peterson enters the game against Houston just 188 yards shy of becoming the seventh 2,000-yard rusher in NFL history.
"This year he's definitely the best," veteran Houston linebacker Bradie James said. "I played against Ricky Williams in his heyday when he would just run over everybody. I played against the Bus (Jerome Bettis), the Bus was great in short yardage. I played against Mike Alstott. I played against all these guys, and what Adrian Peterson is doing right now, I hadn't seen it before."
"We don't want to be on the end of his record setting," he continued. "We've got to do our job and really not get caught up in all that."
The Texans (12-2) need a win to secure both a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. To do that they'll have to slow Peterson, the NFL's leading rusher.
"It's going to be the biggest challenge we've had around here in a while," Houston coach Gary Kubiak said.
Bradford take the hits for Rams: Sam Bradford has never cared much for numbers and statistics.
So the St. Louis Rams quarterback was surprised to find out he has been sacked in 30 successive games, the longest current streak in the NFL.
"That's great to know, thanks," he chuckled.
Bradford, the top overall pick in the 2010 draft, has endured his share of bumps and bruises this season. He has been sacked 35 times for 233 yards in losses. On Sunday, he was sacked four times for 32 yards in a 36-22 loss to Minnesota that all but eliminated the Rams from postseason contention.
The last time the Oklahoma product escaped a game unscathed was Nov. 21, 2010 in a 34-17 loss to Atlanta.
The sack string doesn't bother Bradford, although he would obviously like to see it end as soon as possible. The Rams (6-7-1) close the season on the road at Tampa and Seattle.
"When you don't get sacked in a game that means that the protection is good, that the ball came out quick," he said. "It's a team effort to eliminate sacks. And that's something we work for each week. If we can get through these next two games with no sacks, that would be awesome."
McElroy goes from third-string to starter for Jets: Greg McElroy has thought about this moment for years, ever since he was a young boy in Texas pretending he was Troy Aikman.
McElroy could imagine nothing greater in those days than being just like one of his idols, throwing the football around and helping an NFL team win games. Fast-forward a few years, and here's McElroy now: starting Sunday as the quarterback for the New York Jets.
"I did it," a beaming McElroy said Wednesday. "I got here and I'm very grateful and excited about this opportunity."
The game against the San Diego Chargers will mark the first NFL start for McElroy, who is stepping in for the benched Mark Sanchez and leapfrogging backup Tim Tebow on the Jets' depth chart.
