Adrian Peterson’s one option was to return to Vikings; now expect team to take care of him

On Sunday, when Adrian Peterson was watching his AAU girl’s basketball team in a northern suburb of Houston, it became clear he was heading back to the Minnesota Vikings. Not because of what he was saying. More because of what he wasn’t saying.

As Dallas Cowboys fans tapped him on the shoulder or waved and reminded them how much they wanted their favorite homegrown running back to play in Big D, Peterson just smiled. There was no “it would be nice” to play for the Cowboys, or a “we’ll see.” Make no mistake, Peterson could have gone that route. These were things he said to a Dallas-area reporter from WFAA-TV while attending an NBA playoff game on April 28. Repeating them to his most ardent supporters on a Sunday afternoon? That would have been far easier than the “thank you” he handed out instead.

But the truth was, Peterson was already planning a return to the Vikings for Tuesday’s offseason workout. It sounded as if he already had his plane ticket purchased. On Sunday, a friend spoke to Peterson about getting an autographed football “when you get back to Minnesota.” Shortly before that, a member of his family talked vaguely about how it was nice to finally be getting all the offseason drama put to bed – in past tense. Really, all that was left was for Peterson to see some Cowboys fans face-to-face and escape without cruelly shining them on. And he aced that final test.

Frankly, none of this seems surprising anymore. Because we relearn the same lesson every offseason and with every new dispute between players and teams. Maybe some of us forget, but at the end of the day, the two men with the most leverage in the NFL are Father Time and Benjamin Franklin. And players like Peterson can’t ignore them either. He’s 30 years old and stands to make a ton of money this season – $12.75 million in base salary (and he’ll likely get his $250,000 offseason workout bonus, too … even though he didn’t make enough offseason workouts to fulfill that portion of his contract).

Yet, with all of that said, it stands to reason that there is one more development left on the table. Much has been made that Peterson reported to the Vikings without his contract having been reworked. Which means one of his primary issues – maybe the only issue that ever truly mattered – still hasn’t been resolved. At this very moment, he still stands the risk of losing the last few years of his earning power if he suffers an injury in 2015.

While his $12.75 million salary becomes guaranteed in Week One of the regular season, an injury prior to that leaves him vulnerable. And none of his $15 million salary in 2016 ($14.75 million base and $250,000 workout bonus) is guaranteed. Nor any dollar after that, either. All of which means that if Peterson breaks a shoulder or blows out his knee in the regular season, the Vikings can cut him prior to 2016 and not be on the hook for anything. And Peterson will have seen his remaining one or two years of earning power obliterated – because no team is going to give top-end money to a 30-something running back coming off a catastrophic injury.

2015 Five Highest Paid Running Backs | FindTheBest

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Simply from that standpoint, Peterson still has an anvil hanging over his head. But there’s plenty of reason to think the Vikings aren’t going to make him play under that. Not after the team paid him in 2014, and decided to pay him again in 2015. And not with budding centerpiece quarterback Teddy Bridgewater standing to benefit immensely from having an elite running back in the backfield.

Indeed, everything the Vikings have done with Peterson this offseason suggests they are looking to keep him beyond 2015. They could have cut him and made salary cap room, but didn’t. They could have traded him, but didn’t. They could have smashed him in the media this offseason, but didn’t. Instead, all they said over and over was, “We want Adrian Peterson back.”

For the Vikings to weather the mayhem that took place since the start of the 2014 season, it suggests more than just a one-season commitment. It suggests coach Mike Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman believe Minnesota is on the verge of a big step forward, and that Peterson will be a huge factor in that.

If that’s correct, then there is still one last bit of work to be done. And everyone – from fans to the Vikings to the media – knows that figuring out a compromise on Peterson’s contract is the surest route to making sure this doesn’t happen again in eight months. For now, Minnesota has its running back under its roof again. He’s working out with teammates, meeting with coaches and taking his step forward. Expect the Vikings to follow suit and lock in some contract guarantees in the coming days.

And expect Peterson to say “thank you” for that support, too.