ST. LOUIS — Adrian Peterson didn’t live up to his called shot and he didn’t have an overly prolific first half.
Nevertheless, the Vikings led St. Louis 13-0 at halftime of Sunday’s regular-season opener at the Edward Jones Dome. The Vikings got a pair of long first-half field goals by Blair Walsh and an eight-yard touchdown pass from Matt Cassel to Greg Jennings with 21 seconds left in the half.
Peterson, Minnesota’s star running back, had vowed last Thursday to score a touchdown on his first carry of the season for a second straight year. Instead, he gained seven yards up the middle.
The eight-year veteran had a modest 39 yards on 11 carries in the first half. Peterson was in jeopardy of having his lowest rushing total ever in a regular-season opener, that being in his first seven seasons 84 yards in 2012 against Jacksonville.
The Vikings got field goals by Walsh in the first quarter of 52 yards and in the second quarter of 46 yards. In 1 1/2 career games against the Rams, Walsh has seven field goals, including four from 50 yards or longer.
It looked as if Minnesota might go into halftime with a 6-0 lead. But cornerback Josh Robinson picked off a Shaun Hill pass late in the half at the Rams 35, setting up the touchdown pass from Cassel to Jennings. All five of Jennings’ TD receptions in his two seasons with the Vikings have come from Cassel.
Peterson, who hasn’t had a preseason carry since 2011, had taken his first attempt of the regular season 78 yards for a touchdown at Detroit last year. He said last week he had predicted before that game to some teammates he would score on his first carry, although he didn’t make a public vow.
Peterson did make a public declaration last Thursday, heading into the game against the Rams.
“I might as well speak it,” he said. “Touchdown. First run.”
After the vow, the Pioneer Press contacted Kevin Bradley, sports book manager for the online betting site Bovada.lv. Bradley said, with no prior knowledge of where the Vikings might start their first possession, the “true odds” of Peterson scoring on his first carry were 100-1.
The Vikings started at their 10 on their first possession Sunday. Peterson then ran seven yards up the middle on the game’s first play.
Minnesota’s best offense ended up being through the air. Cassel completed 10 of 16 passes for 105 yards in the half.
The Vikings’ defense was strong. St. Louis had only one serious scoring threat in the first half, but kicker Greg Zuerlein missed a 50-yard field goal late in the first quarter.
Follow Chris Tomasson at twitter.com/christomasson
