Adrian Peterson still chooses to physically discipline his children

Four years after facing criminal charges related to child abuse, the former Minnesota Vikings running back recently said that he still uses a belt to discipline his children.

Things were looking great for the Minnesota Vikings after Mike Zimmer’s very first game as the team’s head coach in 2014. The Vikings easily took care of the then St. Louis Rams 34-6 and the team appeared to be heading in the right direction with Zimmer leading the way.

But then just five days later, a bomb was dropped on Minnesota and their new head coach.

Vikings All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson was charged with reckless or negligent injury to a child after using a switch to discipline his son, who was 4-years-old at the time.

Peterson was later deactivated by the Vikings and he didn’t appear in another game for the rest of the season.

To avoid jail time, the former Minnesota running back agreed to a plea deal that resulted in a $4,000 fine and mandatory community service. However, his reputation to Vikings fans was changed forever.

Two years after the incident in an interview with Sports Illustrated, Peterson claimed that he didn’t think what he did to his son in 2014 should be categorized as abuse.

People may have a hard time understanding the running back’s thought process though, given the photos that were leaked to the public after he was charged that featured visible wounds and bruises on his son’s body.

In the same interview, Peterson also said he would have liked to, “slap the taste out of (Cris Carter’s) mouth,” after the former Minnesota wide receiver publicly disagreed with his parenting methods.

Now, four years removed from the infamous incident, Peterson is still not backing down from what he thinks is right and wrong when it comes to disciplining his children.

In an interview with Bleacher Report’s Master Tesfatsion that was published on Wednesday, the former Vikings running back told the reporter how he recently spanked another one of his sons with a belt.

"“I had to discipline my son and spank him the other day with a belt. There’s different ways I discipline my kids. I didn’t let (the 2014 incident) change me.”"

Peterson did also mention in the interview that what he did four years ago was a mistake. However, still choosing to use a belt on his children might make it hard for some to believe that he learned a ton from that mistake.

After missing all but one contest in 2014, Peterson appeared in 19 more games for the Vikings before the team decided to move on from him in 2017.

The 33-year-old running back is currently a member of the Washington Redskins and is on pace for his eighth season with at least 1,000 rushing yards.