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Adrian Peterson

AFC Notes: Brady, Gates, Peterson, Titans

June 9th, 2018 at 5:04pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

In a recent opinion piece, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe makes the case that Tom Brady didn’t hold up his end of the bargain in trying to quell concerns about drama within the Patriots organization. Volin argues that coach Bill Belichick and Rob Gronkowski both did their best to assure the media and the public that all was good in New England, but that Brady raised more questions than he answered during his brief media availability.

Volin writes that the Patriots’ goal when Gronkowski and Brady finally returned to the team was to “show a united front, and squash all of the drama”, but that Brady failed to do so. According to Volin, Belichick did a “superb job” and Gronkowski did a “great job of explaining himself too”, but that Brady seemed like “he wants the drama to linger, to let it be known that he’s still upset with Belichick and the organization.”

Whatever is going on with the Patriots, it seems to be a saga with no end in sight. The issues likely won’t be put to rest for good until the team take the field in 2018 and shows they can still play at a championship level even with all the off-field distractions.

Here’s more from around the AFC:

  • Antonio Gates isn’t a realistic candidate to be signed by the Bills, according to Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News. Despite the Bills being a bit thin at tight end behind Charles Clay, Skurski thinks the Bills would rather develop the young tight ends on their roster.
  • Adrian Peterson would like to play for the Texans, he told Mark Berman of Fox 26 (Twitter link). Peterson said “I would definitely love to be here in Houston. I think I can help them out tremendously..I still got it.” Peterson has repeatedly expressed his desire to continue playing, but hasn’t drawn much interest.
  • Rookie tight end Ethan Wolf is a “long shot” to make the Titans roster, according to Jim Wyatt of Titansonline.com. Wyatt thinks he’ll end up on the outside looking in due to the Titans’ full tight end depth-chart, but that he’s a potential practice squad candidate.

Lamar Miller Open To Playing With Adrian Peterson

June 1st, 2018 at 9:35pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Native Texan and free agent running back Adrian Peterson has long expressed his willingness to play for Houston’s NFL franchise, and incumbent back Lamar Miller would have no problem with the Texans adding the 33-year-old Peterson, as he explained during an appearance on NFL Network (video link).

“I used to look up to Adrian Peterson growing up,” Miller said. “He runs the ball hard. He’s a great running back. He’s been a great running back in this league for years. It would be good to have him join us, just his leadership, seeing the things he’s done in previous years, that I feel like I could probably learn from him. It would help us out as a team.”

Miller handled the lion’s share of Houston’s carries in 2017, toting the ball 238 times while managing a 3.7 yards per carry average. The Texans certainly have room for another back however, as D’Onta Foreman — who is recovering from a torn Achilles and could hypothetically start the season on the physically unable to perform list — rushed 78 times last year. Alfred Blue, whom the Texans recently re-signed, handled 71 carries of his own.

Arizona acquired Peterson from the Saints last October for the price of a 2018 sixth-round pick, and installed him as its starting running back in the absence of superstar David Johnson. Peterson, who has maintained he wants to continue his career, managed 3.5 yards per carry on 129 rushes and scored twice in the desert. However, he was among the least effective backs in the league: Football Outsiders ranked Peterson 46th among 47 running backs in both DYAR and DVOA, metrics which measure overall and per-play value, respectively.

The Best Remaining NFL Free Agents

June 1st, 2018 at 11:35am CST by Zachary Links

The biggest names in this year’s free agent class such as Kirk Cousins, Sammy Watkins, Allen Robinson, and Trumaine Johnson have long been spoken for, but plenty of notable players remain on the board here in June. With a hat tip to James Palmer of NFL.com (on Twitter), here’s a look at some high-profile veterans who are still seeking work this summer: 

Of course, Kaepernick’s situation is more complicated than the rest. Lately, the only updates we’ve heard regarding Kaepernick have been tied to his pending collusion case against the NFL. Former teammate Reid is certainly closer to the NFL radar after an April meeting with the Bengals, but he also believes teams are shying away from him due to his participation in anthem protests. Reid filed a grievance of his own against the NFL in May and has been spotted working out with Kaepernick.

Unfortunately for Murray and Peterson, filing a grievance for age bias against running backs is not an option. The Titans kicked Murray to the curb in March and he has not found a new NFL home despite meeting with the Lions, Seahawks, and Dolphins since his release. Peterson has lobbied the Texans, Saints, Packers, Panthers, Dolphins, and Rams to sign him, but we have yet to hear of any reciprocated interest from those clubs. Given Peterson’s reluctance to be on the lower end of a timeshare in New Orleans last year, one has to imagine that Peterson will not be a real consideration for teams unless a starter gets injured in camp. Murray could be a more attractive option for teams. Although he averaged just 3.6 yards per tote with the Titans last year, he contributed in the passing game with 39 receptions.

Bryant says he has no regrets about turning down a three-year, $21MM offer from the Ravens, but right now it looks like he blew his opportunity at a solid free agent deal. Reportedly, many teams are unwilling to consider him for even the league minimum, so it seems unlikely that he’ll find the lucrative one-year contract he’s seeking. On the plus side, his former employer says multiple teams have checked in on him.

Things have been eerily quiet for Maclin after he was displaced by the Ravens, though the Eagles and Cowboys considered him internally in the spring. We also haven’t heard a peep about Decker since his spring meetings with the Raiders and Ravens. Both players are roughly in the same boat – they were 1,000-yard receivers in 2015, but they are on the wrong side of 30 and haven’t done much on the field in the last two years. Still, both profile as low-risk/high-reward signings.

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Extra Points: Safeties, Eagles, Peterson

May 28th, 2018 at 4:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

With Eric Reid, Tre Boston and Kenny Vaccaro unemployed after 2 1/2 months of free agency, safety market’s served as a persistent talking about this offseason. One former defensive coordinator attributed this oddity to teams having difficulty placing values on modern safeties due to myriad responsibilities. An agent for a top safety has a darker view of what’s transpiring.

“(Teams) are basically avoiding everyone because they’re ignoring Reid,” the agent told CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora. “That’s exactly how I am looking at it, absolutely. Our (client) hasn’t done anything like that in his past and neither have most of these guys. But that’s exactly what we think is going on here. They just shut the safety market down entirely, and the guy who got paid, by and large, didn’t make much.

“It’s the most asinine thing I’ve ever seen that you can tell us that this group of safeties aren’t worth signing, period, at this point. And saying maybe some other guys have turned down $2MM or $2.5MM, but we have a pretty damn good safety and we haven’t even seen money like that on the table. I know for our guy, we haven’t had a contract offer at all; not one on paper and only one verbal offer, and that offer was for the league minimum with a split and no guaranteed money. So that’s not even an offer; that’s an insult. For these guys to have no jobs right now you can’t tell me ‘that’s just the market.’ That’s BS.”

“The guy who got paid” is likely Morgan Burnett, the other member of what was viewed by some as the top quartet. The Steelers signed him for three years and $14.35MM — 27th in the league in terms of AAV. Reid currently has a collusion grievance against the NFL pending, but Boston and Vaccaro are both in their primes and have received scant interest. Our Rory Parks asked PFR readers which of these players will sign first, and Vaccaro is winning that vote. Both Reid and Vaccaro appeared on PFR’s original Top 50 Free Agents list.

Here’s the latest from around the league:

  • Adrian Peterson is also trying to fetch a contract, though age and injury concerns are likely to blame for his unattached status. Peterson mentioned the Texans and Saints again as possible fits while adding some other teams to the mix. Although, he hasn’t received much interest as of yet. “You know obviously I’ve mentioned Houston a couple of times,” Peterson said on a YouTube video (via Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk). “I feel like Green Bay wouldn’t be a bad look as well. Carolina. There’s some options out there. You know Miami. Down there in (Los Angeles). That would be a nice look, too, with Todd Gurley. You see around the league they have a two-back system. Guys are not really not pounding the ball 20, 30 times a game, so I think that leaves the door open for a couple of opportunities for me.”
  • The Eagles saw Jordan Hicks participate in individual drills during OTAs, per Jimmy Kempski of PhillyVoice.com. Hicks ruptured an Achilles’ tendon in Week 7 of last year but is believed to be ahead of schedule. After releasing Mychal Kendricks, the Eagles are counting on their middle linebacker to return.
  • Derek Barnett practiced fully for the Eagles, Kempski notes.. The second-year defensive end underwent sports hernia surgery shortly after the season ended, and it appears he’s recovered sufficiently.
  • An agent who represents some upper-echelon quarterbacks expects Aaron Rodgers to sign a deal that includes $110MM fully guaranteed within the contract’s first three years, and La Canfora writes that number may be low. Matt Ryan‘s $94.5MM in full guarantees represents the league’s current bar, and Rodgers, despite having two years left on his current Packers contract, should be able to demand a figure north of that.

Buccaneers Notes: Peterson, Front Office, Godwin

May 27th, 2018 at 6:50pm CST by Ben Levine

While the Buccaneers have a number of young running backs on their roster, the team could be seeking a veteran upgrade. Could that upgrade be future Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson? Roy Cummings of Florida Football Insiders seems to think so.

While the website doesn’t report anything definitive, they cite several reasons why Peterson could be a logical target for the Bucs. For starters, the organization showed interest in the veteran last offseason before he ultimately joined the Saints. Furthermore, while the 33-year-old looked like a shell of his former self in 2017, he could provide an upgrade to the team’s current options (a grouping that includes Peyton Barber, Jacquizz Rodgers, Charles Sims, and second-round rookie Ronald Jones). Finally, Peterson had previously worked out with quarterback Jameis Winston, meaning there’s already an existing relationship between the two.

Following an underwhelming 2017 campaign, Peterson has started posting videos of his workouts to social media in the hope that it will catch a team’s attention. Teams still might be wary after he finished this past year with only 529 rushing yards and two scores on 156 carries.

Let’s take a look at some more notes out of Tampa Bay…

  • For what it’s worth, Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times reiterates (via Twitter) that there “was no rumor that the Bucs were interested” in Peterson. The reporter also doesn’t expect the team to pursue the seven-time Pro Bowler.
  • Pat Perles, who had been with the Bucs organization for four years, has left to become a defensive analyst for Kansas football, tweets Auman. The executive had recently served as Tampa Bay’s player personnel scout. Perles has also spent time with the Chiefs and Rams organizations.
  • Receiver Chris Godwin was plenty productive during his rookie campaign, hauling in 34 receptions for 525 yards and one touchdown. Now, heading into his second year in the league, the team is expecting even more from the third-rounder. “I see him as a starter,” said offensive coordinator Todd Monken (via USA Today’s Bonnie Mott). “That’s how I see it. He’s earned the right to be a starter. Whether it works out that way or not, I don’t know. But he’s earned the right, finished the year that way … Whatever we’ve asked him to do, he’s done it well, and he’s only going to continue to get better. Why? Because he’s big, he’s fast, he’s physical, he’s smart. He’s going to continue to develop and it’s important to him. He takes care of his body, does it exactly the way you want.” Godwin will still have to battle to work his way up the depth chart, as he’s currently slotted behind Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson, and Adam Humphries.
  • In case you missed, former Buccaneers quarterback Josh Freeman decided to retire from the CFL yesterday.

Adrian Peterson Open To Saints Reunion

May 14th, 2018 at 1:50pm CST by Zachary Links

Things didn’t work out so well for Adrian Peterson and the Saints last year, but the running back is willing to give it another go. The free agent running back says he’d be open to signing with New Orleans, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 

“Of course I would,” Peterson said. “I’m not tripping over the past, plus it would be a different look.”

The Saints could consider free running backs in the wake of Mark Ingram‘s four-game suspension and head coach Sean Payton says the team would “absolutely” consider Peterson if they went in that direction. Still, the Saints are reportedly focused on those that are already under contract. The Saints have sixth-round Louisiana Tech product Boston Scott, former Bills rusher Jonathan Williams, and Trey Edmunds behind top RB Alvin Kamara.

It only makes sense for Peterson to be open to a Saints return given the lack of interest in the 33-year-old this offseason. However, it remains to be seen whether the Saints will actually pursue another go ’round with No. 28. Last year, Peterson appeared in just four games for the Saints and found himself frustrated by his place in the pecking order. In October, the Saints shipped him to the Cardinals for a conditional draft pick.

Peterson averaged just 3.4 yards per carry last year, but to his credit, he did have two 100-yard games.

Saints Would Consider Signing Adrian Peterson

May 12th, 2018 at 3:05pm CST by Ben Levine

After Mark Ingram was suspended for four games earlier this week, we heard that the Saints wouldn’t be pursuing a veteran running back. However, if the organization has a change of heart, they could focus in on a former member of the team. Head coach Sean Payton told reporters (including ESPN’s Mike Triplett) that the Saints would “absolutely” consider signing running back Adrian Peterson if they decided to pursue a veteran player.

“This gets back to the notion that we had some type of any argument (during Week 1) at Minnesota, which I still say there was none,” Payton said. “I think a ton of him.”

Peterson’s stint in New Orleans was short-lived, as the veteran found himself behind Ingram and Alvin Kamara on the depth chart. The 33-year-old ultimately appeared in four games for the Saints, compiling 81 rushing yards on 27 carries. He looked better during his time with the Cardinals, where he finished with 448 yards and two scores on 129 carries. While the future Hall of Famer is getting up there in age, there could still be something left in the tank. After all, Peterson did collect nearly 1,500 rushing yards only two seasons ago (on the flip side, he’s also suffered a torn meniscus since that time).

While there were thoughts that Peterson didn’t get along with Payton, it seems to be the contrary. Despite the lack of playing time, the organization still thought the veteran had a lasting impact on the locker room, especially when it came to Kamara. Peterson recently indicated that he was still interested in playing in the NFL, and he said that several teams had expressed interest.

“I’m healthy and I’m ready to roll,” Peterson said. “If you want someone to help you win a championship and be productive — be very productive — you know how to contact me.”

However, the Saints seem to be more focused on rolling with their current running backs during Ingram’s absence, a grouping that includes Boston Scott, Trey Edmunds and Jonathan Williams. Payton seemed to indicate that he was still going to deploy a “two-headed monster” running attack, as opposed to giving Kamara extra carries.

“The mistake would be then Alvin gets 15 more carries, and that’s not the direction we would expect to go. I don’t think that is wise,” Payton said.

Latest On Adrian Peterson

May 10th, 2018 at 5:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

Nearly two months after the Cardinals released Adrian Peterson, the 11-year veteran has experienced an off-the-radar free agency stay. Unlike last offseason, he hasn’t been connected to any teams since being released. But he’s not planning to retire.

Peterson wants to continue to play and said, per Tom Pelissero of NFL.com, multiple teams have reached out to him. However, the 33-year-old back adds that nothing is imminent regarding a landing spot. Although, at this juncture of his career, Peterson may not need an extensive offseason with a team.

“I’m healthy and I’m ready to roll,” Peterson said, via Pelissero. “If you want someone to help you win a championship and be productive — be very productive — you know how to contact me.”

Peterson finished last season on IR with a neck injury, one that didn’t require surgery. The future Hall of Famer said three doctors in Houston and Los Angeles have cleared him. The three-time rushing champion also would be open to returning to the Saints, who suddenly have some uncertainty in their backfield with Mark Ingram being suspended for four games and skipping offseason workouts. Pelissero reports the Saints viewed Peterson, his apparent ill-fitting style in New Orleans’ offense notwithstanding, as a positive influence on Alvin Kamara.

“For whatever reason, it just didn’t work out (in New Orleans), but when I got my shot in Arizona, I showed what I was able to do,” said Peterson, who posted two 100-plus-yard games with the Cardinals after arriving via midseason trade. “I know once I get back out there, I’ll be blessed with a healthy season and show people I’m still the best in the league.”

The Saints didn’t sign Peterson until late April of last year, and as Pelissero notes (video link), he’s back to his high-intensity workout regimen in hopes for a mid-offseason signing somewhere this year. He’s been training in his native Houston and said in March he would like to join the Texans. While a suitor is unknown at this point, Peterson appears intent on showing he’s still worth a roster spot.

Cardinals Release Adrian Peterson

March 13th, 2018 at 4:10pm CST by Ben Levine

Adrian Peterson‘s brief tenure with the Cardinals has come to an end. The team cut the veteran running back today, reports Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. We learned yesterday that the organization was planning to move on from Peterson. As our own Zach Links pointed out, the move allows the team to avoid a $750K bonus that was due on Friday.

Peterson could conceivably return to the Cardinals at a cheaper rate than his scheduled 2018 $2.881MM cap charge. The Patriots, Seahawks, and Giants expressed interest in the running back before he joined the Saints last offseason, and the Ravens had considered a trade for Peterson before he was dealt to the Cardinals. Peterson is set to turn 33 at the end of the month, and following a relatively underwhelming season, it’s uncertain if there will be as many suitors this time around.

The running back struggled during his brief stint with the Saints, but he saw a bit more success after joining Arizona. In six starts, Peterson ran for 448 yards and two touchdowns on 129 carries (3.5 yards per carry). While these numbers are relatively respectable, the advanced numbers indicate that the future Hall of Famer may be running out of steam. Football Outsiders ranked Peterson 46th among 47 tailbacks in both DYAR and DVOA, metrics which measure overall and per-play value.

After releasing Peterson, the Cardinals are now rostering five backup options to David Johnson, including Elijhaa Penny, D.J. Foster, T.J. Logan, Bronson Hill, and Darius Victor.

Adrian Peterson Wants To Join Texans

March 13th, 2018 at 10:51am CST by Zachary Links

Adrian Peterson is a free agent, and he has an idea of where he wants to go. Peterson tells TMZ Sports that joining the texans would be his “dream scenario.”

“Obviously, being back home would be awesome,” the Palestine, Texas native said … “Houston has always been a team I’ve thought about.”

At this time, it’s not clear if the interest has been reciprocated or whether the Texans have reached out to Peterson’s representatives. Right now, the Texans seem pretty set at the top of the running back depth chart with Lamar Miller and D’Onta Foreman under contract, although Foreman is recovering from an Achilles injury.

Last season, Peterson agreed to a two-year contract with the Saints during the free agent period, but was rarely involved in the club’s offense. After weeks of not being utilized, Peterson was dealt to the Cardinals in exchange for a conditional late-round pick.

Peterson, who will turn 33 years old in March, managed 3.5 yards per carry on 129 rushes and scored twice in the desert. However, he was among the least effective backs in the league: Football Outsiders ranked Peterson 46th among 47 running backs in both DYAR and DVOA, metrics which measure overall and per-play value, respectively.

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