Freischaltung » Jonathan Stewart seems determined that nobody

CHARLOTTE Tony Pollard Jersey , N.C. (AP)is going to write the epitaph on his NFL career just yet. The Panthers 30-year-old running back and all-time leading rusher has played 129 games in his NFL career, but had never run for more than two touchdowns in a game. That ended Sunday when Stewart matched his entire 2017 scoring production with TD runs of 60, 1 and 1 yards in Carolina’s 31-24 win over the Minnesota Vikings. ”We didn’t doubt him,” said Panthers coach Ron Rivera. ”That’s why we kept putting Jonathan out there. We believe in who he is, and he has been solid.” Stewart’s first score came on a 60-yard run on third-and-1 in the first quarter, which gave the Panthers an early lead. The Vikings had stacked the box against the Panthers’ jumbo offensive set, and left guard Andrew Norwell pulled to make the key block to spring Stewart. ”You hope to just see a hole open because you just know there’s no one else in the secondary,” said Stewart. Stewart scored on a 1-yard run on the second play of the second quarter, and his over-the-top 1-yard score with 1:47 left was the difference.He finished with 103 yards on 16 carries for his second 100-yard performance of the season. OLSEN MAKING PROGRESS: Three-time Pro Bowler Olsen said he had a goal when he played his second game since missing 10 weeks with a broken right foot. ”I wanted to be on the field in victory formation,” he said. ”That means I played the whole game and we won.” Olsen was only targeted once and did not make a reception, but he finished the game. He did leave the field briefly in the first half, after taking a hit on the right ankle. ”It felt good to get back out there, play a full game, kind of get my legs under me a little bit Noah Fant Jersey ,” said Olsen. ”It’s been a while since I’ve played a good amount of stats.” Panthers coach Ron Rivera said he wants to get Olsen more involved in the offense next week against Green Bay. Center Ryan Kalil played the entire game for Carolina, the first time he has done that since Week 1 because of a lingering neck injury. VIKINGS ACHILLES HEEL: The Vikings sacked Cam Newton eight times last season, but only got to him twice on Sunday. Newton said he tried to get the ball out faster this time around. He also was a problem for the Vikings in the running game, picking up 75 yards – including a key 62-yard run to set up the go-ahead touchdown with 2:00 remaining. Newton, who had a 69-yard run in Week 10, is the first quarterback in the Super Bowl era to have multiple 60-yard plus rushes in a single season. The Vikings entered Sunday’s game at Carolina holding opposing quarterbacks to 4.7 yards per carry. Drew Brees, Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan, though, don’t exactly draw the same attention as Cam Newton, who has averaged 78 yards rushing in the past six games. Minnesota won’t face a running quarterback anywhere near the ilk of Newton the rest of the way: Cincinnati’s Andy Dalton, Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers and Chicago’s Mitch Trubisky. THIELEN STILL HOT: It seems there is no stopping Adam Thielen. The Vikings wide receiver has averaged 105.3 yards receiving over the last six games, with four touchdowns during that span. Minnesota’s problem Sunday was its running backs never got on track against Carolina. They were held to 60 yards on 16 carries. VIKINGS’ OFFENSIVE LINE WOES: The Vikings’ offensive line continues to struggle with injuries. Starting left tackle Riley Reiff left Sunday’s game with an ankle injury and was replaced by Rashod Hill. Reiff had his foot in a boot after the game, but his long-term status is unknown. The Vikings started the game without right tackle Mike Remmers and center Pat Elflein because of injuries. The hope is that all three will be back for the playoffs. TITLE MUST WAIT: The Vikings will have to wait another week for a chance to win their second division title in three years. Tight end Kyle Rudolph said that is not the goal. They’re hoping to become the first team to play the Super Bowl in its own stadium. ”We’re not satisfied with that, though Dalton Risner Jersey ,” Rudolph said. ”Our goals and expectations have moved on. We want to make sure everyone has to come through U.S. Bank Stadium. We need to get this division wrapped up, but to do that, we have to play better.” — Stringers Eli Pachecho and Justin Parker contributed to this report. — ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — A person with knowledge of the move says the Washington Redskins have agreed to re-sign running back Adrian Peterson to an $8 million, two-year deal.The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the team hadn’t announced the contract.Peterson joined the Redskins on a one-year, veteran-minimum contract in August after rookie Derrius Guice tore the ACL in his left knee. Peterson rushed for 1,042 yards and seven touchdowns in 16 games at age 33 and now will combine with Guice and third-down back Chris Thompson in Washington’s backfield.While Peterson is back, plenty else is changing around him. The Redskins agreed to sign former New York Giants safety Landon Collins, formally acquired quarterback Case Keenum and released linebacker Zach Brown and defensive lineman Stacy McGee.Cutting Brown and McGee saved just over $8 million in salary-cap space to use in free agency. And the Redskins are already at work on spending that money.Washington agreed to an $84 million, six-year deal with Collins and announced the completion of the trade to acquire Keenum from the Denver Broncos. Adding Collins gives the Redskins another playmaker in the secondary if they keep cornerback Josh Norman for a fourth season.Greg Manusky will be back as defensive coordinator; Redskins executives met with potential replacements after the season ended. Moves this week show team President Bruce Allen and the front office believe changes in personnel — not coaching — will be enough to improve a defense that ranked 17th in the NFL and struggled after a strong start.Brown’s departure by trade or release was hardly surprising after he saw “the writing on the wall” from losing his starting job in December. Brown, 29, had two seasons left on a $21 million, three-year contract he signed with Washington last spring.McGee was a salary-cap casualty at a position Washington has plenty of young depth in Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne Drew Lock Jersey , Matt Ioannidis and Tim Settle. An injury limited McGee, 29, to eight games last season.Safety has been a revolving door for the Redskins in recent years, and they could turn over both starters at the position from the start of last season. They released D.J. Swearinger late in 2018 after repeated criticism of the coaching staff, and Montae Nicholson’s future is uncertain after he was arrested and charged with assault and battery in December.The big changes aren’t restricted to defense. Keenum is expected to compete with Colt McCoy, the only healthy QB on the roster with Alex Smith expected to miss all of 2019 with a broken right leg.“We all feel great about Colt without a doubt, but he’s had his injury history as well, and we anticipate a competitive camp with those two guys,” coach Jay Gruden said. “And if we add a third guy via the draft or somewhere else, we’ll roll the ball out there and let them play, but I feel good about Colt and Case’s skill set. They are very similar, so it’ll be easy to draw up plays for those two guys.”