The tug of war between star running back Adrian Peterson and Minnesota Viking’s brass is nothing short of its own reality show. Peterson, who turned 30 in March, arrives for OTAs amid a contract standoff. He missed most of last season after being indicted on child abuse charges against his then 4-year old son. He was placed on the NFL’s Exempt/Commissioner’s Permission list, requiring Peterson to stay away from all team activities. In early November, Peterson accepted a plea deal and was planning on returning but the NFL suspended him instead for the remainder of the season with no pay.
Adrian Peterson Arrives for OTAs
In December, Peterson appealed the decision and on February of this year he was reinstated to the league. Shortly after the reinstatement, rumors of a Peterson trade resulted in a media frenzy. Peterson is expected to have a salary of $12.75 million in the 2015 season and he has $46 million remaining on his contract for the next three years. Peterson became unhappy when the team was not going guarantee more money and the hold teams have on contracted players.
In a lengthy Twitter rant, Peterson wrote, “Research how many NFL teams hasn’t honored a player’s contract and learn something. Question for the people, is a contract two sided or one?” Peterson believes that the owners are not allowing players to have the choice to leave if they want to, claiming that he was speaking for all organizations, such as the NBA and MLB. The truth of the matter is that Peterson needed a fresh start and was hoping he would get one someplace else. His real issue is that he no longer has guaranteed money and he wanted financial security.
Soon after the rant, head coach Mike Zimmer made it perfectly clear that Peterson had two choices, either play for the Vikings or retire as one. The Minnesota Vikings have stated that they had every intention of paying Peterson his $12.75 million due in 2015. In issuing this proclamation, the Vikings would be honoring his contract with the expectation that he would be the starting running back come September.
At the end of the day money talks and in order for Peterson to receive the money penned in his contract, he will have to play to get paid. Hoping to be released and picked up by another team that would guarantee him money, Peterson was given the silent treatment by all 31 teams, knowing a trade or release would never happen. One does not just hand over a player that can tear apart your defense and Zimmer is no fool.
As of today, the clash is over and the super-sonic running back has returned to Minnesota. He arrived for OTAs and has already made an immediate impact. With his return, the potential wild-card spot predicted for the Vikings will now potentially be a playoff contender. It is evident that Zimmer is not just holding a whistle. He intends to lead his team to compete in the NFC North with Peterson as the work horse.
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