Getty Image / Nic Antaya
Adrian Peterson put together a storied career in the NFL.
He was a standout from the second he hit the field in pros, racking up 1341 rushing yards as a rookie and breaking the single-game rushing record that season.
He later topped the 2000-yard mark in a single season to make himself the last non-quarterback to win an MVP. Over the course of his career he ran for the 5th most yards in league history, earned himself 4 All-Pro 1st Team nods and 3 more selections to the 2nd Team.
Unfortunately, it has been a while since he has been that running back.
He has only gone over 1000 years in a season once since 2015 and the last time we saw him on the field was 2021. He only appeared in 3 games that season and averaged just 2.6 yards per carry.
Despite that, we may not have seen the last of Peterson in the NFL.
Peterson told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence E Hill Jr that he still doesn’t consider himself retired.
Future Hall of Fame RB Adrian Peterson not ready to retire. Could Dallas Cowboys be an option?https://t.co/KtAX00WkBI
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— Clarence Hill Jr (@clarencehilljr) May 23, 2023
“Mentally, I haven’t officially hung it up,” Peterson said. “We’ll see what happens. My mindset is, if God’s willing maybe an opportunity presents itself and maybe it happens this season. I’ll go from there to your. But nothing happens this season. For sure, I will be hanging it up.”
While Peterson may still have the itch to play, he would likely have a very tough time finding a team that is interested in his services at 38 years old.
It’s tough out there for running backs right now and even younger former stars like Ezekiel Elliott and Leonard Fournette are still searching for employment.
While there are likely fans out there who would enjoy watching Peterson attempt to close the 361-yard gap between him and Barry Sanders to move into 4th all-time, it just doesn’t seem like Peterson has a great chance at returning to the NFL.