Pittsburgh Steelers vs Minnesota Vikings Match Player Stats On Sep 29, 2013

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 29, 2013

Vikings 34, Steelers 27: Adrian Peterson ran for 140 yards and two touchdowns in London as Minnesota earned its first victory and kept Pittsburgh winless.

Matt Cassel started in place of Christian Ponder and went 16-for-25 for 248 yards and two touchdowns for the Vikings (1-3), who held an opponent under 30 points for the first time this season. Greg Jennings caught both scoring passes from Cassel while Jerome Simpson led the receiving corps with seven catches for 124 yards.

Ben Roethlisberger completed 36-of-51 passes for 383 yards and a score but lost a fumble at the Minnesota 10-yard line with six seconds left. Rookie Le’Veon Bell ran for 57 yards and a pair of touchdowns in his NFL debut as the Steelers (0-4) remained winless through the first four games for the first time since 1968.

The Vikings took a 10-0 lead early in the first quarter when Jennings caught a short pass on the left side, broke one tackle and cut to the middle before racing to the end zone for a 70-yard score. Peterson went the opposite way early in the second quarter, cutting to the right side for a 60-yard touchdown to help the Vikings take a 20-10 lead into the locker room.

Cassel’s 16-yard touchdown pass to Jennings with 5:11 left in the third quarter pushed the lead out to 34-17. Roethlisberger found Jerricho Cotchery for a 15-yard score early in the fourth and Pittsburgh's Shaun Suisham added a field goal with 3:37 left, but the Steelers could not convert on the final drive.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The only team to ever begin the season 0-4 and make the playoffs was the 1992 San Diego Chargers. … Ponder (fractured rib) was inactive for the game but is expected to get the starting job back following Minnesota’s bye week. … Bell is the first rookie RB to have two TDs in a game for Pittsburgh since Bam Morris in 1994.