Adrian Peterson called it a blessing in disguise. Strange way to describe a career-threatening major knee surgery. The Minnesota Vikings' star came back better than ever, just missing Eric Dickerson's longstanding rushing record and closing out the season with two of the top NFL awards from The Associated Press: Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year. As sort of an added bonus, he beat Peyton Manning for both of them Saturday night. "My career could have easily been over, just like that," the sensational running back said. "Oh man. The things I've been through throughout my lifetime has made me mentally tough. "I'm kind of speechless. This is amazing," he said in accepting his awards, along with five others at the "2nd Annual NFL Honors" show on CBS saluting the NFL's best players, performances and plays from the 2012 season. The awards are based on balloting from a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the NFL. Peterson received 30½ votes from a nationwide panel of 50 media members who regularly cover the NFL. Manning, who also won the Comeback Player of the Year award, got the other 19½ votes for MVP. He is the first running back to win MVP since LaDainian Tomlinson in 2006. The talented running back rushed for 12 touchdowns and averaged 6.0 yards per carry. Read more http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/8...-adrian-peterson-beats-peyton-manning-win-mvp
