Adrian Peterson breaks free for 78-yard touchdown on first carry of 2013

Adrian Peterson rushed for a league-leading 2,097 yards in 2012. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) Adrian Peterson did not receive a single carry in the preseason

Adrian Peterson rushed for a league-leading 2,097 yards in 2012. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Adrian Peterson did not receive a single carry in the preseason as the Minnesota Vikings attempted to save him for the regular season. That strategy did not take long to pay off.

Peterson took his first carry of the game against Detroit, on the Vikings' first offensive play of the season, and broke through for a 78-touchdown run. Peterson cut through a hole at the line, made a move around rookie cornerback Darius Slay, then outraced cornerback Chris Houston to the end zone.

The 78-yard rush put Peterson just six yards off his Week 1 total from last season. The Vikings' superstar finished the year with 2,097 yards -- eight yards from Eric Dickerson's single-season record -- but he did not top the century mark on the ground until Week 3, and he did so only once in Minnesota's first five games.

He is off to a much more explosive start already this year.

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