Rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III is practicing after suffering a concussion last week, and it looks like he'll get a crack at snapping the Washington Redskins ' eight-game home losing streak.

The Minnesota Vikings will have running back Adrian Peterson in their bid for a fourth straight victory in the nation's capital as he appears fully recovered from a season-ending knee injury suffered there in 2011.

Peterson and the surprising Vikings go for a fourth straight victory overall and sole possession of the NFC North lead Sunday.

Concerned that Griffin - the league's leading rushing quarterback with 241 yards - was more susceptible to injury, the Redskins (2-3) did not call a running play for the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner in last Sunday's 24-17 loss to Atlanta. Griffin, though, was knocked out in the third quarter when linebacker Sean Weatherspoon leveled him on a scramble after he failed to find an open receiver on a third-and-goal play.

Griffin attended a Rookie Success Program meeting Monday morning and completed the NFL's concussion protocol before he was allowed to practice Wednesday.

Griffin was a limited participant in practice Thursday but took part in a full practice for the first time this week Friday, leaving coach Mike Shanahan confident Griffin will start Sunday.

"If he passes his tests and we don't see any symptoms, then it looks like he'll be ready to go," Shanahan said.

The Vikings (4-1) arrive with plenty of confidence as they're off to their best start since opening 6-0 en route to a division title in 2009. With a win at Washington, Minnesota will move one-half game in front of idle Chicago.

"I know everyone else is surprised that we're 4-1. What stinks is that we should be 5-0," said quarterback Christian Ponder , referring to a 23-20 loss at Indianapolis on Sept. 16.

Ponder's development in his second year has given the Vikings a legitimate passing threat - he has a 95.5 passer rating and his 69.0 completion percentage is second only to Griffin (69.1). But a bigger reason Minnesota is riding its best stretch since winning four straight Nov. 1-29, 2009, might be Peterson's quick return.

The four-time Pro Bowl back suffered a torn ACL and MCL on the Vikings' first offensive play of the second half of a 33-26 win at Washington on Dec. 24. Ponder suffered a head injury on the next play on a sack, and he left the game for good after taking one more snap.

Peterson didn't play this preseason as he rehabbed from those injuries, but he has 420 yards and two scores thus far. Peterson has also answered questions about his breakaway speed as he's tied for second in the NFL with four rushes of 20-plus yards.

The Vikings, ninth in the league with 666 rushing yards, expect Peterson to be available Sunday after he suffered a mild left ankle sprain in last Sunday's 30-7 victory over Tennessee.

"When it's the same leg where you had the knee injury, I can see there being a little bit of doubt in your mind about what is going to happen next but to his credit once again, he kept himself together, got back on the field. He ran great," coach Leslie Frazier said of Peterson, who finished with 88 yards on 17 carries.

So has Percy Harvin , who has become the team's go-to receiver on bubble screen passes that maximize his versatility. He is tied for second in the NFL with 38 catches, and 329 of his 407 receiving yards have come after the catch.

"A beast, that's probably a good way to describe him," Ponder said after Harvin had a rushing and receiving score last week. "We're going to keep giving him the ball."

The Redskins will continue to rely on rookie Alfred Morris , who had a season-high 115 rushing yards last week and has 491 overall. Morris, a sixth-round pick, and Griffin are tied for the team lead with four rushing TDs, with Griffin's total having already tied the single-season team record for a quarterback.

Washington, though, will face an improving Vikings defense that's allowed one rushing TD. Minnesota held former 2,000-yard rusher Chris Johnson to 24 on 15 carries last Sunday and the Titans to 52 overall on the ground.

"It's exciting to know that every week you have a chance. It's exciting to know that with so many questions going into this year, it's exciting to answer 'OK, if we play our best, we have a chance to beat anybody in the NFL,'" end Jared Allen said. "And we're pretty darn good if we play our best."

The Redskins' last home win was 22-21 over Arizona on Sept. 18, 2011.

RG3 runs for 138 yards; Redskins top Vikings 38-26

LANDOVER, Md. (AP) -- Robert Griffin III's concussion was on everyone's mind as he dropped back on a third-and-6, with the Washington Redskins trying to put the game away.

"I took off running and got to the sideline, thought about running out of bounds - because everyone's been telling me that lately," he said with a big smile. "And I felt like I had the guy outflanked, and then I just took off running. And the rest is history."

Not only did his 76-yard touchdown run put the game away, it also dismissed any thoughts that his first serious shot to the head as a pro was going to stop RG3 from being RG3.

The longest scoring run by an NFL quarterback in 16 years was part of his 138-yard rushing performance in the Redskins' 38-26 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

"When Robert gets in top gear, it's like watching a track meet," receiver Santana Moss said. "And he ain't coming in second."

The former college hurdler ran for two scores and threw for another as Washington (3-3) snapped its eight-game home losing streak.

The perennial doormats of the NFC East are becoming relevant again because they finally have a quarterback - a No. 2 overall draft pick able to use his arm and legs to pick apart the Vikings (4-2), who had won three straight and hadn't allowed more than 23 points this season.

After falling behind 9-0 early and being outgained 148-7, Washington responded with 24 straight points during a stretch in which it outgained Minnesota 225-14.

The Vikings made a game of it with two fourth-quarter touchdowns and were starting to use their timeouts, hoping to get the ball back when Griffin faced third-and-6 at his own 24.

Keep in mind that Griffin left the previous week's loss to the Atlanta Falcons when he was hit in the head while trying to get some extra yards on a scramble.

He passed the NFL's post-concussion tests and was cleared to play Sunday, but coaches and teammates hoped that he had learned a lesson about when to keep running and when to slide - or get out of bounds.

Accordingly, Griffin's second-by-second description of his teammates' reaction to his touchdown run is priceless.

"I could see guys telling me I got the first, so they were saying, `Stay inbounds,"' Griffin said. "And then I was running like, `I think I can get a little more.' And it all went from `Stop, stay inbounds,' to `Go! Go for the touchdown!"'

Redskins head trainer Larry Hess ran alongside down the sideline - "the same 40 I was running," Griffin said. Tight ends coach Sean McVay told Griffin he felt "a gust of wind" as the rookie ran past. Fullback Darrel Young was chanting "R-G-3!" along with the crowd.

Griffin didn't stop until he took a seat on the front row, performing what is quickly becoming known as the "Landover Leap." He said he stayed longer than planned because the fans wouldn't let him leave.

It was the longest touchdown run by an NFL quarterback since Kordell Stewart scampered 80 yards for the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Carolina Panthers in 1996, and Griffin's rushing total was the fifth highest for a quarterback in NFL history and the most since Michael Vick ran for 166 in 2006.

Griffin said he reined himself in somewhat in the wake of his concussion - he was cheered as he scrambled harmlessly out of bounds on a first-down play in the first quarter - but he again ran some option and finished with 13 carries, including six Redskins offensive plays in a row that included a 7-yard score.

"You try to play smart," Griffin said. "But stay aggressive."

He also drew penalties, one on a horse collar tackle and another for roughing-the-passer, one that was perhaps aided by the acting skills Griffin has acquired from doing his commercials. The official didn't throw the flag for Erin Henderson 's slight shove until Griffin was on the ground making an appeal.

"He hit me good," said Griffin, laughing his way through the description. "Come on, man. It wasn't like a basketball flop. I sold it pretty well. I mean, the ball was clearly gone, guys. It was a great job of me and the ref being on the same page."

He can throw as well. He completed 17 of 22 passes with one touchdown and only his second interception of the season.

The Vikings, meanwhile, paid the price for promising possessions that fell four points short. Drives that got inside the 10 yielded field goals of 20, 27 and 27 yards in the first quarter.

"We've got to turn those 3s into 7," said Adrian Peterson , who ran for 79 yards but at times was limping on his sprained left ankle. "Today, it finally came back and bit us."

Notes: Christian Ponder went 35 for 52 for 352 yards with two TDs and two interceptions. He was also credited with a lost fumble when the ball slipped out of his hand to linebacker Lorenzo Alexander . ... Former Vikings safety Madieu Williams returned an interception 24 yards for Washington's fourth defensive touchdown of the year. The Redskins scored only 43 points off turnovers last year; they already have 49 this year. ... K Kai Forbath , making his Redskins debut, made a 50-yarder in his only FG attempt. ... Redskins S Jordan Pugh left the fourth quarter twice with a head injury. The Redskins say he was cleared to return after the first injury, then was diagnosed with a concussion after the second one.

---

---

© 2013 STATS LLC