Adrian Peterson loves the game of football, but he doesn’t love the NFL offseason and would rather not participate in training camp with the Minnesota Vikings if he can get away with it.
The Vikings should take care here and possibly make an exception for the star running back. Peterson, speaking with ESPN, made it sound like his hatred for the offseason and the grind of training camp could lead him to retire.
“That’s it,” Peterson said. “Training camp, going through the grind, OTAs and all that — that will definitely be the deciding factor. Physically, body-wise, I’ll be good. It’s just mentally — like with OTAs, I’m out there practicing, I’m going, I’m putting in work. But it’s so repetitive that it’s more suited toward the young guys and getting them into the system. It gets kind of boring.”
Entering his 10th season, Peterson is still one of the NFL’s premier running backs. He led the league in rushing last season with 1,485 yards and was also No. 1 in touchdowns, with 11.
Based on the way he looks (picture here) this offseason, it sure seems like he could play another five years. Of course, this would break the mold, as most running backs see significant drop-off in production after they hit the dreaded 30-year mark.
But it sounds like he might be teetering towards retiring early if he doesn’t get the chance to work out instead of participate in training camp, not to mention OTAs and minicamps.
“Think about this: The 2012 season [after recovering from ACL surgery], I didn’t do any training camp,” Peterson said. “But I was over there on the side, working out. You get that extra month of working out? Come on, man. I would much rather not participate in training camp and work out, just to have more of an edge. Training camp, you’re going out there, you’re playing football, you’re going to lift, and after that, you don’t want to do anything. You’re tired, from meetings and all that.”
For most guys, you’d dismiss this kind of talk as wishful thinking. But for a guy like Peterson, it’s something that must be taken seriously.
And it’s not like Peterson needs to be at offseason workouts and training camp to have success come the regular season. Playing one of the most dangerous positions in football, he does need his body to be fresh for the season opener. He does need that reserve of endurance and strength to be at his best over the course of the long season.
This is going to be something to follow going forward. It would be a shame if Peterson does retire before he would like to, just because he’s sick of the offseason grind.