Vikings fullback Jerome Felton has been a huge lead blocker for Adrian Peterson. (US Presswire)

Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is closing in on one of the best seasons of his career -- potentially the best. He currently leads the league in rushing with 1,600 yards -- his career best was 1,760 yards in 2008 -- and his three games remaining.

But he hasn’t done it all by himself. An improved Vikings offensive line has certainly helped, not to mention the addition of fullback Jerome Felton, who doesn’t get mentioned very often.

“Jerome has done a terrific job,” coach Leslie Frazier said. “Our offensive line has obviously done a great job in opening up some holes for Adrian. Kudos to those guys. But Jerome at the fullback position is an unsung hero.”

Felton came to the Vikings via free agency after playing in both Indianapolis and Carolina last season, and one of the reasons he chose Minnesota was for the chance to block for Peterson.

“That was big,” Felton said. “I remember when I was sitting in Detroit, we always had tough games against Minnesota, and I used to watch when Minnesota's offense was on the field and I was like, 'Man, if I could ever team up with him, I think it could be something special.' That was a big thing. Just to have the opportunity to come here and be able to block for him, he's obviously a future Hall of Famer. That was something special and something I was obviously very interested in doing.”

The acquisition of Felton made sense for the Vikings, as well. Even though Peterson has said in the past that he prefers running without a fullback, adding Felton has made a difference for him this season.

“We’re playing a lot more two-back than we played a season ago and it’s really helped us,” Frazier said. “We went into this offseason saying that we wanted to be able to find a fullback to really be a lead blocker for Adrian because we felt like some of his best runs have come when he has a lead blocker. [Adrian] might differ with that, but you put the tape on and you see that that’s true. Jerome has done a terrific job of doing everything we’ve asked him to do as a lead blocker. He’s had a lot to do with the success we’ve had running the football.”

Peterson often mentions the play of Felton, as well as the offensive line, when taking credit for what he has accomplished so far this season. And if he accomplished his goal of 2,000 yards (and more), it’s a goal for everyone involved.

“I think it means a lot to the team,” Felton said. “You kind of hear guys in the locker room talking about it, you hear the media talk about it a little bit. It's within reach, and I feel like it's something that he's capable of doing and I think he wants it, so we want it for him. I think that if he gets 2,000 yards, that means we're doing good things as an offense and that helps us win. That's ultimately the most important thing.”

For more Vikings news and notes, follow Joe Oberle on Twitter @CBSVikings and@joeoberle.