Saints running back Adrian Peterson downplayed his frustration with playing time following his team’s season-opening loss to the Vikings. Despite video clips showing the veteran yelling at head coach Sean Payton, Peterson was clear that the entire situation was blown out of proportion.
“It was definitely overdramatized,” Peterson told Joel Erickson of The New Orleans Advocate. “Of course, with the heat of the game, me being back in Minnesota and things like that, just catching that look – that intense look on my face, like I had – I actually got some laughs out of some of the memes that were made.”
Peterson finished the contest having played only nine snaps, and his 18 rushing yards was his lowest total since the 2015 season. While he acknowledged some frustrations with his lack of use, he believes the situation will inevitably sort itself out.
“I didn’t sign up for nine snaps, though, but unfortunately that’s the way the game played out,” Peterson said. “In my mind, personally, I knew it was gonna take some adjusting. You know, me and Mark [Ingram] played in the last preseason game, AK [Alvin Kamara] didn’t even play that game. So with all three of us being out there, I knew it would take a game or so to kind of get adjusted.”
Let’s take a look at some more notes from around the NFL…
- Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia lead Sports Illustrated’s Robert Klemko’s list of the top-10 head coaching candidates. Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin is third on the list, while Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz and Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo round out the top-five.
- When asked if Jets ownership would still trust general manager Mike Maccagnan to draft a quarterback, ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini acknowledges that it’d be “unconventional” to let the executive go after only three seasons. However, the writer also notes that Maccagnan still needs to be evaluated for his ability to draft signal-callers, especially after the selection of Christian Hackenberg. Ultimately, Cimini is willing to give the general manager until the end of the season, as there’s still time for Hackenberg (and teammate Bryce Petty) to show improvements. However, if the quarterbacks aren’t developing, then there’s some obvious cause for concern.
- The Vikings promoted Kyle Sloter to their active roster earlier today, but Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press observes (via Twitter) that the quarterback won’t be earning a huge pay raise. Sloter was already making more than your standard practice squad player, so his salary will “only” be boosted from $20K per week to a bit more than $27K per week.