Vikings legend still thinks about missing out on the rushing record

Former Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson produced one of the greatest rushing seasons in NFL history in 2012. After returning from a torn ACL suffered on Christmas Eve in 2011, Peterson came back stronger than ever, running for 2,097 yards.

His best moment came in Week 17 against the Green Bay Packers. The Vikings needed to win to make the playoffs, and everyone expected Peterson, who entered the game 208 yards short of Eric Dickerson's single-season rushing record, to be the focal point of the offense again.

Even though the Packers knew Peterson was getting the ball, he still ran for 199 yards and scored two touchdowns (one receiving). Tied at 34 with 26 seconds left in regulation, Peterson took a handoff and burst through the line of scrimmage, evading Green Bay defenders en route to a 26-yard run that set Minnesota up at the Packers' 12-yard line.

Head coach Leslie Frazier let the clock run down to three seconds before calling a timeout. Then kicker Blair Walsh came in to boot the 29-yard field goal through to send the Vikings to the playoffs.

14 years later, Peterson still wishes he had another opportunity before that field goal to break the record.

"Hindsight when I think about, I'm like, 'God, dog, Coach Frazier, man, there [were] like 20 seconds left before I made that last run,'" Peterson told Jordan Schultz in an interview this week. "We could've called a timeout and given me another... run or two to get [the record]."

This was a criticism from fans at the time, though it never really made sense. Had Minnesota elected to call timeout and tried another run with Peterson, there was no guarantee he wouldn't have fumbled it, as that had been an issue throughout his career.

There could also have been any number of penalties, like a false start or holding that would have pushed Walsh back further. Worse yet, there could have been a risk of injury in a moment where the Vikings were in good position for a game-winning field goal.

Peterson came close to the record, and it would have been awesome to see him break it. But even if he wishes the end of the game had played out a little differently, the reality of the situation made it virtually impossible to accommodate the star running back.