CLEVELAND -- The Minnesota Vikings dominated the second half, scoring 24 unanswered points Sunday, en route to a 34-20 victory over the Cleveland Browns.
The Vikings looked shaky and sloppy in the first half, with the offense led by Brett Favre going three-and-out on three consecutive drives in the second quarter.
But trailing 13-10 at halftime, the Vikings opened with two impressive touchdown drives to take control of the game. Running back Adrian Peterson started to pound the ball, with 10 carries in the third quarter, and rookie Percy Harvin flashed his playmaking skills, with an 11-yard run and a 6-yard touchdown.
Favre connected on his first touchdown as a Viking, completing a 6-yarder to Harvin. For the game, Favre was 14 of 21 for 110 yards. He had no turnovers, and his passer rating was 95.3.
The highlight of the game was a 64-yard touchdown run by Peterson, during which he tossed aside or barreled through six defenders. Peterson finished with 25 carries for 180 yards and three touchdowns.
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The most glaring mistake for the Vikings was a 67-yard punt return touchdown by the Browns' Josh Cribbs just before halftime. The Browns blocked the play well, and only long snapper Cullen Loeffler and punter Chris Kluwe had a chance to make a tackle.
Neither came close.
The Vikings play the Detroit Lions next Sunday at Ford Field.
The Lions lost 45-27 to the New Orleans Saints.
Rookie quarterback Matthew Stafford, the No. 1 overall pick,
was 16 of 37 for 205 yards, while Saints quarterback Drew Brees completed 26 of 34 passes for 358 yards and six touchdowns.
-- Copyright (c) 2009, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn./Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
Minnesota 3 7 14 10--34
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Cleveland 3 10 0 7--20
First Quarter
Cle_FG Dawson 37, 11:28.
Min_FG Longwell 21, :03.
Second Quarter
Min_Peterson 1 run (Longwell kick), 11:09.
Cle_FG Dawson 20, 5:57.
Cle_Cribbs 67 punt return (Dawson kick), 1:30.
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Third Quarter
Min_Peterson 1 run (Longwell kick), 10:07.
Min_Harvin 6 pass from Favre (Longwell kick), 1:06.
Fourth Quarter
Min_FG Longwell 37, 6:55.
Min_Peterson 64 run (Longwell kick), 5:58.
Cle_Royal 26 pass from Quinn (Dawson kick), :28.
A_70,560.
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Min Cle
First downs 19 17
Total Net Yards 310 268
Rushes-yards 37-225 20-89
Passing 85 179
Punt Returns 2-54 3-67
Kickoff Returns 3-99 6-140
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Interceptions Ret. 1-0 0-0
Comp-Att-Int 14-22-0 21-35-1
Sacked-Yards Lost 4-25 5-26
Punts 6-38.7 5-42.0
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 3-1
Penalties-Yards 3-38 8-66
Time of Possession 33:22 26:38
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INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING_Minnesota, Peterson 25-180, Harvin 2-22, Taylor 7-17, Dugan 1-5, Tahi 1-2, Jackson 1-(minus 1). Cleveland, Lewis 11-57, Quinn 2-21, Cribbs 3-6, Davis 4-5.
PASSING_Minnesota, Favre 14-21-0-110, Jackson 0-1-0-0. Cleveland, Quinn 21-35-1-205.
RECEIVING_Minnesota, Taylor 5-13, Harvin 3-36, Shiancoe 3-26, Rice 2-17, Peterson 1-18. Cleveland, Royal 4-60, Furrey 4-28, Lewis 3-47, Davis 3-4, Heiden 2-14, Cribbs 2-10, Massaquoi 1-18, Edwards 1-12, Vickers 1-12.
MISSED FIELD GOALS_None.
