The Minnesota Vikings gave Adrian Peterson a miserable backdrop for his Ring of Honor induction Monday, losing 23-6 to the Buffalo Bills without scoring a touchdown. Minnesota rushed just six times for 17 yards before halftime. That wasn't the tribute anyone had in mind.
Peterson's Ring of Honor ceremony deserved a prime-time stage. He amassed 11,747 rushing yards and 97 rushing touchdowns in Minnesota, and his 2,097-yard MVP campaign in 2012 remains the standard against which every Vikings running back gets measured.
The official Vikings career retrospective details a runner who could turn a routine handoff into a defensive emergency. Fans spent halftime celebrating that kind of power, then returned to watching an offense that couldn't string together first downs.
Vikings' rushing problems went beyond the play calls
Kevin O'Connell's offense opened with four possessions lasting three plays or fewer. By halftime, Carson Wentz had attempted 17 passes, while Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason had combined for five carries. Minnesota was trailing only 10-6, so the scoreboard hadn't forced O'Connell to abandon the ground game.
There are valid reasons to question whether more carries would've helped. Runs don't solve an offense that keeps losing early downs, and six attempts aren't enough to prove the blocking would have held up over a larger workload.
Wentz also made the problem worse with an errant backward pass that became a fumble, then two second-half interceptions. He finished 8-of-25 for 81 yards and an 8.9 passer rating.
But the Vikings had spent the early season establishing a more committed rushing approach. That emphasis disappeared when the passing attack needed help most. Minnesota finished 0-for-8 on third down, giving itself little chance to establish a rhythm.
Buffalo wasn't dominating on every rushing attempt, either. James Cook averaged just 3.5 yards per carry, but the Bills kept feeding him, eventually collecting 107 rushing yards and a touchdown on 31 attempts.
Kevin O'Connell needs more from the ground game to protect his defense
Mason finished with 35 yards on six carries, including 28 yards on four second-half attempts. That's hardly a Peterson impersonation, but it was useful production in an offense that managed only 51 rushing yards overall. Jones finished with 16 yards on five carries.
Mason's larger backfield role recently suggested he could handle more early-down volume, while Jones offered flexibility as a receiver. Giving Mason more work won't automatically fix poor protection or quarterback decisions. It could, however, produce manageable second and third downs rather than asking Wentz to rescue every possession.
Brian Flores' defense delivered four sacks and an interception, yet Buffalo possessed the ball for more than 42 minutes. Minnesota is now 6-2 and visits a resurgent Green Bay on Sunday. Winners of two straight, the Packers are still alive in what's now a tight NFC North.
O'Connell needs sustained possessions to keep his defense fresh, especially against a divisional opponent that already lost to Minnesota once this season.
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