The Minnesota Vikings may look at the trade or release of Adrian Peterson this offseason and if he ends up leaving Minnesota, teams like the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, Arizona Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers could be potential landing spots for the running back after his lengthy career up north.
Peterson is owed big money this year and that likely will be the deciding factor about whether the Vikings keep him or not into 2015. According to ESPN.com, head coach Mike Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman met with Peterson at his home in Houston and while it helped clear the air between the two sides, Peterson still has "concerns" about coming back. Earlier in the offseason Peterson reportedly was unhappy with the way he was placed on the exempt list this season and felt some in the organization were working against him.
All offseason the Vikings have been open about wanting Peterson back, but the Minnesota Star Tribune reports the team may ask him to take a pay cut. Peterson is owed nearly $13 million in salary and has a $15 million cap hit, which is the biggest of any running back in the NFL. CBS Sports reports that if Peterson ends up leaving Minnesota, teams like the Dallas Cowboys, Indianapolis Colts and Arizona Cardinals could be landing spots.
ESPN.com also reports that the San Diego Chargers have emerged as a potential option for Peterson. The Vikings may want Peterson to take a pay cut and a report from Yahoo Sports says that Peterson would be willing to redo his contract in a trade. Things could happen soon, as Peterson had his suspension overturned on appeal and now could be reinstated to the NFL when the league year begins.
Peterson has been one of the best running backs in football during his career and apart from this past season and when he injured his ACL, he has had at least 1000 yards. Peterson has rushed for at least 10 touchdowns every season apart from last year and while he is going to be 30, he will have one less year of wear and tear on his body after missing most of this season.
Peterson played in one game last season and rushed for 75 yards against the Rams and that came after another strong year with 1266 yards and 10 touchdowns. Peterson rushed for 2097 yards the year after tearing his ACL and he has scored at least 10 touchdowns in every season of his career. Peterson only has had less than 1000 yards once and that was his injury season and that year he still had 973 yards before going down and that was in just 12 games. Peterson will find work next year, whether it's in Minnesota or elsewhere.