EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- The Minnesota Vikings are two games over .500 for the first time since Adrian Peterson's MVP season in 2012 and they're in search of their first win in Chicago this weekend since Peterson ran for 224 yards on 20 carries against the Bears as a rookie in 2007.

A victory there would put the Vikings at 5-2, and in a season that began with high hopes for the Vikings after Peterson returned from last year's suspension, the 30-year-old running back doesn't want to waste any time.

In a conference call with Chicago media on Wednesday, ESPN Bears reporter Jeff Dickerson asked Peterson if he feels he needs a Super Bowl to vindicate his career. "Yeah, definitely," Peterson said. "I feel like for anyone coming in – I’ll speak for myself – but that’s the No. 1 goal. The ultimate goal is coming in and winning a Super Bowl.

"Me being nine years in and being able to look back and see how fast things have passed and opportunities have come and gone, it’s like, it’s time. It’s even a bigger emphasis on winning a championship. So that’s the mindset that I have and I try to project that onto these young guys in different conversations and just by the way I prepare and the way I go out and play.”

When he spoke to Kansas City reporters a couple weeks ago, Peterson ended his game of one-upsmanship with Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles by calling himself the "Michael Jordan of the NFL." Peterson said it in jest, and for now, the comparison certainly falls flat in the category of championships. While the Vikings probably won't be considered a contender this season, they're heading in the right direction quickly enough that it's tough to rule anything out by next year. And if there's going to be a prominent voice with a sense of urgency in the Vikings' locker room, it will be Peterson's.