Adrian Peterson officially reinstated from suspension by NFL

Adrian Peterson is now officially a member of the Minnesota Vikings again, after the NFL reinstated him from a suspension dating back to last year.

Here’s the release:

“Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings was advised today that effective tomorrow he is reinstated as an active NFL player and may participate in all scheduled activities with the Vikings.

“In a letter from Commissioner Roger Goodell, Peterson was informed that he is expected to fulfill his remaining obligations to the authorities in Minnesota and Texas, as well as the additional commitments Peterson made during his April 7 meeting with the commissioner regarding maintaining an ongoing program of counseling and treatment as recommended by medical advisors.”

The suspension stems from Peterson’s legal case last year in which he injured his 4-year-old son by disciplining him with the switch. Really though, the suspension came about because Peterson had the nerve to not go along with the NFL’s punishment methods, refusing to go to a disciplinary hearing last November, as the NFLPA ripped the league for insconsistent application of discipline. The league wanted Peterson to show remorse. The NFL doesn’t like its punishment authority questioned. So last November, Peterson was suspended for the rest of the 2014 season.

When a federal court ruled that the NFL acted incorrectly in punishing Peterson and vacated the suspension, the NFL again refused to have its authority questioned and instead of letting it go and admitting a mistake, it appealed the court’s decision so Peterson would have to serve every bit of his suspension, and two days as it turns out. Peterson was eligible for reinstatement on April 15. The reinstatement is effective on Friday.

That’s in the past, but there are now pressing questions for Peterson and the Vikings moving forward. The team and player have been at odds, with Peterson reportedly not being happy with how the Vikings didn’t stand by him during his legal issues. That has led to a lot of speculation about a possible trade, although his $12.75 million base salary might limit those options. Peterson is now free to join the Vikings for offseason workouts, though it’s unclear if he’ll choose to do so.

The Vikings’ statement on Peterson was short and to the point: