Adrian Peterson and the Minnesota Vikings could be headed for a split this offseason and the team may trade Peterson if he does not want to return and if that happens, teams like the Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins, Washington Redskins and Jacksonville Jaguars could be potential landing spots for the running back.
Peterson and the Vikings have not been able to agree on how to move forward and this comes as Peterson is on his way to getting reinstated by the NFL. According to EPSN.com, Peterson met with Roger Goodell and the two spoke for the first time since October and now Peterson could be close to officially getting reinstated by the league. Peterson was suspended indefinitely and later it was overturned on appeal and once Peterson is reinstated, the Vikings could look at trading him.
Peterson reportedly is "uneasy" about coming back to the Vikings, as sources said to ESPN.com that he felt "ambushed" by the team and the league when he was placed on the exempt list last season. Pro Football Talk reported earlier in the season that if Peterson was traded, the most likely landing spots would be the Dallas Cowboys or Arizona Cardinals. The Vikings have been open about wanting Peterson to return, but so far his agent has said that it may not be in the "best interests" of his client to stay.
The tough thing for Peterson in a trade is his high contract and that could keep certain teams from getting involved. The Cowboys have signed Darren McFadden this offseason and while they redid Tony Romo's contract to free up cap space, they may not want to add a $15 million cap hit. Peter King at the MMQB writes that the Cardinals and Cowboys were interested, but that talk of a trade has died down of late. King mentions the Jaguars as an "upset special" pick to trade for Peterson, as they have a ton of cap space.
The Jaguars did go after DeMarco Murray in the offseason and they also signed Julius Thomas to a big deal. The team has over $30 million in cap space and that would make Peterson's $12.75 million salary not be as much of a hit for this club compared to others. The Vikings appear to have the leverage, as they have said they will not be releasing Peterson this offseason and expect him to be with the team in 2015. The Vikings have Peterson under contract for three more seasons and for over $40 million.
According to Bleacher Report's Jason Cole, Peterson has a "dream scenario" of being traded to the Dallas Cowboys, which has been rumored about all offseason. When Demarco Murray left things heated up with the talk of Peterson to Dallas, but his high cap number and the draft pick it would take to trade for him may keep the Cowboys out of the mix. As it stands now, Peterson could end up having to decide whether to play for the Vikings or sit out and force the team to trade him.
Peterson also should be officially reinstated at some point this month by the NFL.