Is Vikings’ latest Adrian Peterson threat legitimate or a leverage ploy?
Of all the players who will be talked about this week of the NFL draft, the one who might get the most attention could be a 30-year-old running back.
Realistically, the Adrian Peterson saga has to be resolved this week. The Minnesota Vikings’ only reason to trade him now would be for a nice draft haul. Once the draft passes, there’s no great reason to move Peterson anymore, unless some team is willing to sell off its 2016 draft.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, citing “the word coming from Minnesota,” says that Peterson will “play for the Vikings or no one” in 2015. So, let’s presume that comes from someone with the Vikings (I don’t think Prince or Joe Mauer is “the word coming from Minnesota”). Are the Vikings leaking that to put the screws to other NFL teams, or to Peterson?
My thought has been that Peterson can complain and ask his way out of Minnesota, but he has no leverage. Unless we think Peterson would pass up $12.75 million in base salary and sit out a second straight season in his prime, it doesn’t really matter if he wants to play for Minnesota or not. The Vikings hold all the cards. The cap savings wouldn’t do the Vikings much good at this point in the league year. Selling Peterson off for a mid-round pick wouldn’t make them a better team. And if you saw the Vikings by the end of last season, you knew that they have good reasons to be optimistic about being a winning team this season. They’re not better with Matt Asiata at running back than former NFL MVP Peterson.
The Cowboys haven’t gotten involved in any Peterson trade talks, Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson reported. Dallas doesn’t want to be a part of the Peterson sweepstakes at the price the Vikings want, Robinson reported. Furthermore, the Cowboys have shown no interest in even talking to the Vikings about Peterson, Robinson reported. There’s still time. And the Cowboys could draft Jay Ajayi or Ameer Abdullah or whoever, but it’s a stretch to think any rookie back would be better for a team coming off a 12-4 season than Peterson.
Robinson’s report also identified Tampa Bay as a possible landing spot for Peterson, with the Buccaneers holding a high second-round pick that could satisfy the Vikings’ demands. That would make sense for both parties.
The clock is ticking. The Vikings’ stance that they’d rather Peterson sit out all year than trade him on the cheap is smart. It wouldn’t help their leverage to say anything else. Now the question becomes: With a week to go, is anyone going to pay Minnesota’s asking price for one of the greatest running backs ever?
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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
