Adrian Peterson didn’t show up to the Vikings’ first day of offseason workouts on Monday, and while it wasn’t a surprise it has allowed some around the NFL to continue to speculate about the future of the team’s 30-year-old running back.
Peterson’s absence reportedly has nothing to do with any bad feelings left by the season-long saga that followed his indictment on child abuse charges. It’s actually pretty customary because over the years he has routinely opted not to attend the voluntary workouts.
Keeping track of Adrian Peterson's offseason attendance habits? Don’t forget he chose a parade over minicamp in 2010: http://t.co/YNZZKXoQqY
— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) April 20, 2015
As the clock ticks toward the NFL draft, once source tells the Pioneer Press that if Peterson is not traded before or during next week’s draft, the Vikings won’t deal him before the 2015 season.
“If he’s not traded next week, they’re going to keep him,” the source said.
According to the report, there are six teams in the mix for Peterson. They include Dallas, Arizona and Tampa Bay, which have long believed to be interested in Peterson. The Pioneer Press reports that Atlanta, Jacksonville and San Diego are also possibilities.
The biggest hurdle to trading Peterson though, might be the Vikings themselves. According to Pro Football Talk, the team remains intent on keeping Peterson unless they’re blown away by a trade offer for him.
“And for good reason. Absent a package that will have the same impact on the Vikings that Peterson could have in 2015, given an improving defense and a young franchise quarterback distributing the ball to a respectable complement of receivers, the Vikings have no reason to make a deal.”
It would be hard to image that type of trade happening in today’s NFL.
According to the Pioneer Press’ source, the Vikings would be hard-pressed to get even a late first round pick for Peterson because of his age.
According to Pro Football Talk, the team would be looking for more than a recent report which mentioned a first round pick and starting cornerback, before they’d consider making a deal.
While no one really knows if the reports are true or if the Vikings just hope to drive up the price for Peterson, the clock to get a deal done is definitely ticking and it appears there’s still quite a gap between what teams are willing to pay for Peterson and what the Vikings would accept.
