Adrian Peterson suffers apparent knee injury vs. Packers
Adrian Peterson suffered an apparent right leg injury in the Minnesota Vikings’ Week 2 game against the Green Bay Packers.
What started off as a promising year for the Minnesota Vikings may quickly be unraveling into an injury-devastated season.
Just weeks after Teddy Bridgewater tore his ACL and dislocated his knee on a non-contact play at practice, Adrian Peterson suffered an apparent leg injury in the Viking’s Week 2 home contest against the visiting Green Bay Packers.
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In the third quarter, Peterson got banged up on his 12th carry of the night and was tended to on the field. He was walked to the sideline but was unable to put any weight on his right leg and limped the entire way. Peterson was then carried to the locker room by the training staff.
It was unclear at first if the injury was an ankle or a knee. What looked like a rolled ankle was shown to be a knee injury on the replay, which NBC’s Michelle Tafoya confirmed from the sidelines.
Adrian Peterson getting worked on after limping off the field. pic.twitter.com/ycSoK2uRVs
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) September 19, 2016
Adrian Peterson could put NO weight on his ankle. Not good. Jerick McKinnon in the game.
— Michael Fabiano (@Michael_Fabiano) September 19, 2016
Adrian Petersen heading back to the locker room https://t.co/38QSnXIlsF
— Aaron Bruski (@aaronbruski) September 19, 2016
According to the Minnesota Vikings PR team, it was indeed a knee injury for Peterson, who was ruled out of the game:
#Vikings RB Adrian Peterson has been ruled out with a knee injury.
— Vikings Communications (@VikingsPR) September 19, 2016
The Vikings scored a touchdown a few plays later to take a 17-7 lead over their NFC North division rivals. Minnesota got the win with a 17-14 victory, as the defense contained Aaron Rogers all night.
But even Sam Bradford’s surprisingly strong Week 2 performance (22-31, 286 yards, 2 TD) and his chemistry with Stefon Diggs (9 receptions, 186 yards, 1 TD) will do little to dull the sting of losing another star in Minnesota’s offense.
According to Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer, AP will undergo an MRI Monday morning, but perhaps the outcome will not be as bad as originally feared:
Mike Zimmer said Adrian Peterson will get an MRI in the morning. "Whatever it was, it calmed down. So we'll see."
— Matt Vensel (@mattvensel) September 19, 2016
Peterson has 31 carries for only 50 yards so far this season. Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata will take on the work load together as Peterson’s replacements at running back.
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Sunday night proved the Vikings don’t need Bridgewater or Peterson to win football games, but depending on how long AP is sidelined for, this puts a ton of pressure on Minnesota’s defense and Sam Bradford to carry the weight in a season that started with Super Bowl aspirations.