Peterson: Rushing record hollow without playoff berth

• Peterson needs 208 yards against the Packers to break Eric Dickerson's record
• Vikings RB says opportunities for records will come if focus is on winning
• Teammate Jared Allen says Peterson's work ethic and determination are infectious

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- There is only one way Adrian Peterson will walk away from the Metrodome a happy man Sunday night — and it has nothing to do with how many yards he might rush for in the regular-season finale against the Green Bay Packers.

Peterson is 102 yards away from hitting the 2,000-yard benchmark — a mark six other running backs have reached in the history of the NFL — and could break Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson's single-season record of 2,105 with 208 yards against the Packers.

Peterson wants the record, just like he wants to win the MVP and Comeback Player of the Year awards. But none of those will matter, Peterson says, if the Vikings lose.

"It would feel hollow. That record would be for nothing," Peterson told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday. "We're not in the hunt; we're getting ready to make offseason plans.

"That's not what this game is about. God willing I'll have more opportunities to break records."

Minnesota can clinch an NFC wild-card berth with a win Sunday. The Vikings can also get in with a loss — as long as the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys and Chicago Bears all also lose.

But those scenarios are secondary.

As Peterson prepares for the final game of the regular season, all he is envisioning is his win-win scenario: Rush for more than 208 yards, beat the NFC North rival Packers and put an exclamation mark on his historic season.

"I know that if I go out and do my job and am productive, I'll give myself opportunities to break that record in the process of winning the game as well," Peterson said.

Sunday will mark the one-year anniversary for Peterson of his surgery to repair the torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee — an injury suffered Dec. 24, 2011, in a road game against the Washington Redskins. The Christmas holiday this week, as well as last Sunday's game against the Texans in Houston, where he did much of his rehab, provided reminders of just how far he has come.

Peterson's rehab process began almost immediately and more quickly than doctors, coaches and teammates were expecting. He outran teammates in a series of wind sprints in April, worked off his own special "Adrian Script" throughout training camp — taking handoffs and catching passes from trainers, not Christian Ponder — and was on the field for the season opener.

In the 15 games since, Peterson has had nine 100-yard games, two 200-yard games and 11 touchdowns and has averaged 6.0 yards a carry while playing in the league's worst-ranked passing offense.

As Peterson sat inside the team's indoor practice facility Thursday, he pretended to start going through a dark tunnel, trying to explain how he felt last Dec. 30 as he began to picture how his post-surgery football life would go.

"I could see the end of it, in my mind. I was going to come back better than I ever was before, lead my team to a championship, amaze people," Peterson said.

"People were going to think I was juicing or that I was on HGH or steroids. And I've heard that several times, and every time I hear it I just smile because I told myself that people would think that based on how I was going to come back. I heard it during games, out in the media world, in the social media world, and it makes me smile."

Peterson has sat out of the Vikings' two practices this week to rest a sore abdominal muscle. The move is strictly precautionary, coach Leslie Frazier said Thursday.

Frazier said neither he nor Peterson would be counting rushing yards against the Packers — though Peterson did have 210 in Green Bay on Dec. 2. Peterson's teammates, though, are paying attention — even if they aren't supposed to be.

Defensive end Jared Allen joked that he broke away from defensive huddles on the sidelines to watch Peterson and the offense at work.

"We're fans, so it's great. Adrian is a great teammate, and that's what makes it more fun for us, because you're watching your friend doing something great out there," Allen said. "You see his determination, his motivation and everything he's worked for kind of culminate with this year, and it drives you as a player to say, 'This dude has a different mentality about him.'

"It's infectious. It's fun to be on a team with a legend in the making."