Spielman speaks on the futures of Peterson, Greenway and more
By Adam Patrick
The Minnesota Vikings’ general manager spoke with some members of the media on Thursday and answered questions on some pretty intriguing team-related topics.
For Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman, these next few months may be part of the most important offseason ever during his time with the team. With a decision on running back Adrian Peterson looming, finding a solution for the Vikings’ offensive line struggles, and figuring out what the team’s future at quarterback looks like beyond 2017, Spielman has a U.S. Bank Stadium-sized bucket full of work to do this offseason.
On Thursday, Minnesota’s general manager took some time to speak with a few members of the Vikings media and did his best to answer the questions he was asked.
As far as Peterson’s future in Minnesota, Spielman had this to offer on the soon to be 32-year-old running back.
"“Adrian Peterson has a significant contract coming up. We have to make a decision.In my mind, regardless of if Adrian is here or not next year because of whatever, he will always be a Minnesota Viking.”– Rick Spielman, Vikings general manager"
His comments on Thursday about Peterson definitely seem to indicate that the team is closer to parting ways with the running back this offseason than keeping him on the roster for next season. A player is normally not referred to as always being a member of a team unless he is close to being out the door.
When asked about if veteran linebacker Chad Greenway will be retiring this offseason, Spielman revealed that he expects Greenway to announce his decision before the start of free agency in March. As of right now, it would come as a complete shock to most if the linebacker returned for another season of football in 2017.
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In terms of how he plans to improve the offensive line this offseason, Spielman did admit on Thursday that his strategy of trying to find blockers in the later rounds of the draft each year has not really worked out as well as he had hoped. Based on his comments, one should feel safe about placing a bet on the Vikings selecting an offensive lineman within the first three rounds of this spring’s draft.
With only one year remaining on Sam Bradford’s current contract and Teddy Bridgewater’s career still in question, Minnesota’s quarterback situation after 2017 could be a bit dicey. Spielman did not say on Thursday whether or not the Vikings will try and extend Bradford’s contract sooner than later and he mentioned that Bridgewater still has yet to be cleared by any medical staff to participate in football related activities.
Next: Vikings to work on their run game this offseason
If anyone is still unsure as to how serious Bridgewater’s knee injury actually is, Spielman was unable to provide a definitive answer when asked on Thursday about the quarterback’s chances of ever making it back out onto the football field.