EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — The Vikings knew Terence Newman could provide leadership and experience for a young secondary when they signed the 37-year-old this offseason.
Newman has done so, but doubled his impact in Oakland on Sunday when he intercepted Raiders QB Derek Carr twice in a 30-14 Vikings victory.
Newman stepped in front of a pass intended for Amari Cooper in the first quarter. He boxed out and out-jumped Andre Holmes in the end zone late in the fourth quarter. Rather than return the ball, Newman dropped to a knee and took a touchback to preserve a nine-point lead.
"I had Andre Holmes, who was a favorable matchup for them," Newman said before joking, "Him being 6-foot-4, and me being 5-foot-12-ish."
Adrian Peterson scored an 80-yard TD on the following snap for the game's final points.
"When we signed (Newman), I felt like he would be a very solid, dependable guy who knows how to play, that does a lot of good things," Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer said Monday. "He's a great kid. He works real hard and helps us in a number of ways."
Newman has been selected as the Bridgestone Performance of the Week for his day that included the 38th and 39th interceptions of his career (third-highest total among active players), five passes defended, five tackles and one tackle for loss.
It was the sixth game of Newman's 13-year career in which he's recorded two or more interceptions. He had three in a game as a rookie in 2003.
Newman now has interceptions against more than half the teams in the NFL (17 of 32).
Newman became the second 37-year-old to post two interceptions in the same game while playing cornerback, joining Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, who had Zimmer as his Defensive Coordinator and Newman as a teammate in Dallas in 2004.
