Who will deliver epic performances in this week's matchups?
Air & Ground matchup of Week 9
St. Louis Rams at Minnesota Vikings (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, FOX) -- Running backs will be the frontmen of this pivotal NFC showdown that could have major playoff implications down the road.
The NFL's newest running back sensation -- the Rams' Todd Gurley -- will be going up against the established top runner -- the Vikings' Adrian Peterson. Through five career games, Gurley has rushed for 575 yards, the third-most in NFL history behind Eric Dickerson's 645 and Peterson's 607.
All but nine of Gurley's 575 yards have come in the previous four games. Excluding Peterson's 2,097-yard 2012 season, he's only had one four-game stretch in his career with more rushing yards than Gurley's 566. That was during Peterson's rookie season of 2007 when he had 653 yards from Weeks 6-9. With four consecutive 100-yard rushing games, Gurley is the third Rams rookie to pull that off, joining Jerome Bettis from 1993 and Dickerson in 1983. Both of those players are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Peterson is also having a highly productive season. Peterson has nearly as many yards rushing through seven games (633) as he had in his 2,000-yard season in 2012 (652). It also behooves the Vikings to feed Peterson the rock. Minnesota is 5-0 this season when Peterson carries the ball 17 or more times.
Gurley won't be the only offensive rookie sensation on the TCF Bank Stadium field on Sunday. Vikings rookie wide receiver Stefon Diggs has become a go-to target for quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Like Gurley, Diggs missed on-field action in the early part of the season. Also like Gurley, Diggs has been outstanding in the previous four games. Diggs has the second-most receiving yards (419) of any player since 1960 through his first four games, trailing Anquan Boldin's 464 yards from 2003.
One outdoor game
This Rams-Vikings game will be the only outdoor contest between the two teams since 1992. The game will be held at the Vikings' temporary home -- TCF Bank Stadium -- while the team awaits next year's opening of U.S. Bank Stadium, which will be the NFL's first fixed-roof stadium since the Detroit Lions' Ford Field opened in 2002. The last time the Rams and Vikings played outdoors was three years before the Rams moved from Los Angeles to St. Louis, and the game took place at Anaheim Stadium. The two teams have met nine times since then, including a divisional playoff game in 1999.
Great Moments in Air & Ground History
Rams 49, Vikings 37 (1999 NFC divisional playoff game) -- The high-octane "Greatest Show on Turf" offense was on full display in the franchise's first playoff appearance in a decade. Behind five touchdown passes from quarterback Kurt Warner -- who emerged that magical season from total unknown into the league's most valuable player. After the Rams sprinted out to a 49-17 lead, the Vikings mounted a rousing comeback attempt. Quarterback Jeff George threw three touchdown passes in the game's final five minutes to trim the Rams' seemingly overwhelming margin of victory to just 12 points. George finished the game with 432 yards and four touchdown passes. Receiver Randy Moss accounted for 188 yards and two touchdowns of George's lofty statistical marks. The Rams, of course, went on to win Super Bowl XXXIV in dramatic fashion over the Tennessee Titans.
Follow Jim Reineking on Twitter @jimreineking.
