Adrian Peterson working at New Orleans Saints OTAs
Adrian Peterson is synonymous with the Minnesota Vikings, so a glimpse of him as a New Orleans Saint looks odd.
Over 10 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Adrian Peterson had double-digit rushing touchdowns in all eight seasons he played at least 12 games. He also topped 1,200 rushing yards in a season seven times, including a 2,000-yard season in 2012 and three total rushing titles.
But Peterson missed large chunks of two of the last three seasons, and at 32 years old the Vikings were not going to bring him back at the salary he was due for 2017. The market for Peterson was slow to develop, and self-driven for a time, but he eventually landed with the New Orleans Saints on a reported two-year deal in late-April.
NFL teams are in the midst of voluntary offseason work this week, and the Saints are obviously practicing. Peterson did not always participate in voluntary offseason stuff while with the Vikings, but he is working with his new teammates.
.@AdrianPeterson in the black and gold! #Saints https://t.co/XkOXkvxnBJ
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) May 25, 2017
New Orleans #Saints running back Adrian Peterson takes part in OTAs at Metairie Training Facility @theadvocateno @wwltv pic.twitter.com/5hl8BkShdM
— Matthew Hinton (@MattHintonPhoto) May 25, 2017
The sight of Peterson in anything other than purple and gold will take getting used to. He joins Mark Ingram on the Saints’ running back depth chart, and they also used a third-round pick on Alvin Kamara after signing Peterson. A more run-heavy offense may be coming for New Orleans this year, in an effort to take some burden off quarterback Drew Brees and protect a bad defense, but Peterson will be competing for touches with two other capable backs.
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Saints fullback John Kuhn played for the Green Bay Packers for a long time, on a sideline opposite Peterson twice a year. He is clearly looking forward to blocking for “All Day” now.
John Kuhn on blocking for Adrian Peterson: "I've been dreaming about a day like this for a long time." #Saints
— Josh Katzenstein (@jkatzenstein) May 25, 2017
Peterson will get a chance to play against his former team right way, in the opener of the traditional Week 1 Monday night double header. If there’s a game he’ll get 20-plus carries in during the 2017 season, that should be it.