NFL: Minnesota 36, St. Louis 22

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ST. LOUIS, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- Adrian Peterson racked up 212 rushing yards Sunday and the Minnesota Vikings helped their playoff chances with a 36-22 victory over St. Louis.

Eighty-four of Peterson's yards came on a long touchdown run for Minnesota, which improved to 8-6 and moved into a second-place tie with the Chicago Bears in the NFC North.

Peterson's total gave him 1,812 rushing yards on the season -- only 294 shy of Eric Dickerson's NFL single-season record of 2,105 with two games to play.

Christian Ponder went 17-of-24 through the air for 131 yards and ran for a touchdown while Blair Walsh booted five field goals in the Vikings' victory.

Sam Bradford amassed 377 passing yards on 35-of-55 efficiency with three touchdowns as the Rams (6-7-1) saw their three-game winning streak snapped.