Barry Sanders 'pulling for' Adrian Peterson to set single-season rushing record

Adrian Peterson needs 294 yards in Minnesota's final two games to break the NFL record for rushing yards in a year, and one of the league's all-time best running backs is rooting for him. Former Detroit Lions star Barry Sanders endorsed Peterson's quest to surpass Eric Dickerson on the single-season list via his twitter account on Monday morning:

So impressed by everything @adrianpeterson has done this year. Big fan of E.D. But really pulling for AP to break the record. Good luck.

— Barry Sanders (@BarrySanders) December 17, 2012

In 1997, Sanders made his own run at Dickerson's record of 2,105 yards. That year, he rushed for 2,053 on 6.1 yards per carry, both career-highs for the 2004 Hall of Fame inductee.

Peterson has been even more efficient than Sanders in that 1997 campaign. AP is picking up 6.3 yards per rush after amassing 212 yards on 24 carries against the St. Louis Rams in Week 15. He needs to average 147 yards per contest against the Houston Texans and Green Bay Packers to break the yardage record.

The Texans are giving up just 93.2 yards per game on the ground, good for fifth in the NFL. The Packers have been more lenient, allowing 114.3 rushing yards per contest.