MADDEN: PETERSON A GREAT RUNNER, NOT GREAT BACK

John Madden is in Minnesota to call tonight’s Bears-Vikings game for NBC, and he has some interesting thoughts about Vikings running back Adrian Peterson. According to Madden, Peterson is a great runner -- great at the pure act of carrying the ball. But Madden thinks Peterson needs to improve in other aspects of the game before he’s truly a great running back. “I think as far as a runner, he’s one of the best I think that’s ever played,” Madden told the St. Paul Pioneer Press. “The greatest runners that I’ve ever seen would be guys like Jim Brown and Barry Sanders. The greatest running back that I ever saw was Walter Payton because he did it all. He would run it. He would block it. He would catch it. In every area, he was the best.” And from Madden’s perspective, it’s those other areas -- receiving and blocking -- where Peterson would need to improve before he’s a great back. “When I say runner, I think [Peterson] is a runner,” Madden said. “As far as a running back, where you have every facet of the position, I still think that he has some pretty big steps to take. Runner, he’s great. He has a chance to be one of the all-time greats. Running back, he still has some work to do.” Peterson is second in the league with 1,180 rushing yards this season. But he has contributed almost nothing to the Vikings’ passing game, catching just 16 passes for 95 yards.