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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted at 2:43 p.m., Sunday, December 9, 2007

NFL: 49ers stop Peterson, but no one else in loss

By Greg Beacham
Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO — Even with rookie sensation Adrian Peterson completely shut down by the 49ers, the Minnesota Vikings were in good hands as soon as Kevin Williams got his big mitts on the ball.

The Vikings' 311-pound defensive lineman returned an interception 18 yards for a touchdown on the game's first play, and Chester Taylor had an 84-yard scoring run in the Vikings' fourth straight victory, a 27-7 win over hapless San Francisco today.

Robert Ferguson caught a 19-yard TD pass from Tarvaris Jackson, who passed for 163 yards. The Vikings (7-6) moved into the sixth spot in the NFC playoff picture by jumping to a 27-0 halftime lead with no help from Peterson, the NFL rushing leader entering the game.

Peterson finished with a career-low 3 yards on 14 carries, as 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis won the meeting of two high-profile rookies. Minnesota's only dynamic offensive play was Taylor's TD run, the third-longest in franchise history and the bulk of his 101 yards rushing.

Yet nothing fancy is necessary to beat the 49ers (3-10) these days.

Frank Gore rushed for 68 yards and lost two fumbles for San Francisco, which has yet another injured quarterback after its 10th loss in 11 games. The Vikings defense turned in its third straight solid performance, limiting the 49ers' league-worst offense to 79 yards in the first half.

After Trent Dilfer went out with a head injury shortly before halftime, third-stringer Shaun Hill went 22-of-28 for 181 yards in the first significant NFL action of his six-year career. Hill, a longtime Vikings backup, committed two turnovers.

Dilfer's day was painful from the first snap. Williams, the Vikings' two-time Pro Bowl defensive end, was able to hang on to a deflected pass and had the presence of mind to run with it, eluding Dilfer for the fourth touchdown of his career. It was his second of the season, following a 54-yard return on Atlanta's first possession in the Vikings' season opener.

Ferguson, who hasn't done much in his first season with Minnesota, scored early in the second quarter, slipping out of linebacker Derek Smith's attempt at a tackle. After Gore fumbled midway through the second quarter, Ryan Longwell's second field goal put the Vikings up 20-0.

Taylor then made the third-longest run from scrimmage in Vikings history, breaking at least three tackles on a sprint down the Minnesota sideline and sparking boos from the thin Candlestick Park crowd.

Dilfer went 7-of-19 for 45 yards before getting hurt when he scrambled for a first down in the final minute of the first half. Backup cornerback Charles Gordon made the tackle with a shoulder to Dilfer's head, and the quarterback stayed down for several minutes before gingerly leaving the field.

With Alex Smith in street clothes because of his injured shoulder, San Francisco turned to Hill, who spent four years with Minnesota before joining the 49ers last season. Hill had taken just one regular-season snap: a kneeldown on the Vikings' final play of 2005.

Hill immediately led a 12-play, 61-yard scoring drive culminating in Arnaz Battle's short TD catch, completing six of his first seven passes and celebrating jubilantly in the end zone. He got another drive going moments later, but a pass slipped out of his hand and went straight to Pat Williams for another interception.