Vikings might be the final opponent of Adrian Peterson’s NFL career
By Adam Patrick
The former Minnesota Vikings running back could be nearing the end of his time in the NFL.
It’s been four seasons since Adrian Peterson last took the field in a Minnesota Vikings uniform. The former Vikings running back is now a member of the Detroit Lions and at 35-years-old, he’s about to finish his 14th season in the NFL.
Sunday’s matchup between Minnesota and Detroit will be the 180th regular-season game Peterson has appeared in and it could potentially be his last.
Despite it being impressive that he’s still able to just contribute anything to an NFL team at his current age, the former Vikings running back hasn’t had a very productive 2020 campaign with the Lions.
Will the NFL career of the former Minnesota Vikings running back be over after Sunday?
Peterson has appeared in 15 games for Detroit this year and he’s been a starter in 10 of them. During his time on the field, the veteran running back has rushed for 541 yards and six touchdowns in addition to catching 12 passes for 101 yards.
During a season in which he’s started at least 10 games in his career, Peterson has never finished with fewer than 1,100 total yards. He’s up to a total of 642 yards heading into Week 17 against Minnesota and it’s possible that he might not even surpass 750 total yards for the season when the final whistle blows on Sunday.
Peterson likely won’t be the one to end his career in the NFL since he still has hopes of playing until he’s 40-years-old. But his lack of production this season for the Lions could be what prevents other teams from giving him more chances in the future.
If Sunday ends up being the last time Peterson takes a snap on an NFL field, he will be remembered as one of the greatest running backs in the history of the league.
He currently ranks fifth all-time in career rushing yards, fourth in career rushing touchdowns, and he is the only non-quarterback to be named the NFL MVP since 2007. Peterson is also the Vikings record-holder for career rushing yards and career rushing touchdowns by a wide margin.
Minnesota head coach Mike Zimmer will likely be attempting to lead his team to victory over Detroit on Sunday. But in order to get the win, the Vikings will have to deal with their former running back having the motivation to defeat his old team in what could be his final appearance in the NFL.