Russell Wilson had three touchdown passes to lead the Seattle Seahawks to a 30-20 win over the Minnesota Vikings at CenturyLink Field.
Wilson went 16-for-24 with 173 yards while Marshawn Lynch carried the ball 26 times for 124 yards and a score for the Seahawks (5-4), who snapped a two-game losing streak. Golden Tate caught two touchdowns passes while Sidney Rice caught the other score.
"Marshawn was fantastic at the line of scrimmage for us," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. "Russell played really well and did a great job handling all the situations and the different plays and things that we did."
Adrian Peterson had a huge game as he finished the contest with two scores and 182 yards on 17 carries for the Vikings (5-4), who have dropped their past two games. Christian Ponder threw for just 63 yards on 11-of-22 passing with an interception in the loss.
"We are struggling in a lot of areas right now," said Minnesota head coach Leslie Frazier. "We were not able to capitalize on Adrian's day and that's difficult to swallow. We need to have more balance."
Minnesota started the game with the ball and it didn't take long for the team to get in the end zone. On the second play, Peterson took a carry around the right end for 74 yards before getting hauled down at the 1-yard line. Two plays later, he punched it in for a 7-0 lead less than two minutes in.
Seattle had to punt on its next touch, but Percy Harvin fumbled on a run and the Seahawks recovered at the Minnesota 17. Three plays later, Wilson found Tate in the end zone from six yards out to tie the game.
Following a Minnesota punt, Seattle started at its own 22 and got to midfield when Wilson and Rice got together on a 23-yard play. Four plays later, Wilson threw a lateral to his right for Rice, who then fired a pass down the field for 25 yards to Zach Miller. Facing a 3rd-and-9 at the 11-yard line, Wilson found Rice in the end zone for a 14-7 lead with 3:15 left in the first.
The Vikings tied the game with a drive that spanned the first and second quarters as the 11-play, 80-yard march was capped on a Peterson 4-yard score to make it 14-all with 11:46 left in the half.
Minnesota's next possession saw it take the lead back as a 36-yard field goal from Blair Walsh with 5:25 to play gave the team a 17-14 advantage.
Seattle, though, came right back to take the lead. Several short gains got the ball across midfield then a 22-yard catch by Miller got the ball to the Minnesota 25. Two plays later, Wilson and Tate got together for an 11-yard score. The extra point was blocked and it was a 20-17 game going into the break.
Seattle's second possession of the third quarter was a successful one. The drive appeared to stall as Wilson was sacked on third down, but an offside call on Minnesota gave the team five yards and another chance which Wilson converted on a 6-yard play to Tate. Lynch then took the ball 23 yards down to the 9-yard line and he punched it in from three yards out for a 27-17 lead with 4:09 to play in the third.
Minnesota crossed midfield on its next drive, but it stalled and the team went with a 55-yard field goal attempt from Walsh that he nailed to make it a 27-20 game with under two minutes to play in the third quarter.
After each team punted once, Seattle padded its advantage with a 40-yard field goal from Steven Hauschka to cap a 9-play, 38-yard drive for a 30-20 lead with 6 1/2 minutes to play.
Ponder was then picked off by Brandon Browner and Seattle was able to get the first downs it needed to kill off the rest of the clock.
Game Notes
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