Earlier this week, the Washington Redskins decided to bring aboard former Pro Bowl running back Adrian Peterson on a one-year deal to help fortify their situation in the backfield that has been decimated by injuries over the last couple of weeks in the preseason and training camp.

This has quickly set up the opportunity for Peterson to prove him on the field in preseason action on Friday night against the Denver Broncos. According to Kareem Copeland of The Washington Post, head coach Jay Gruden has a game plan to give Peterson some touches in the first half that should give them a good idea of what he can offer the team.

“In the first half, I’d like to get him some touches and get a good lather going,” Gruden said. “I think you [can] tell by the whole body of work that he has put on throughout his career. I think the big thing you try to see on the first seven [to] eight carries is getting out of the huddle, having the plays register in his mind, how quickly he can adapt to our audibles and all that goes into an offensive game plan.

“So, trying to give him a feel for the quarterback, snap count, our linemen, our blocking schemes, but as far as viewing him as a player and what he can do, I think the most important thing is just in the system what he can do.”

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The cards will be on the table for Peterson as he will have the opportunity to showcase what he can bring to the table at this point in his career. He has already impressed the team enough during his workout that it earned him a deal. However, what is intriguing about this situation is that he's playing for the veteran's minimum salary that has no guaranteed money, which only heightens the importance of how he plays on Friday.

The Redskins could part ways with him without any financial commitment for the 2018 season. This puts more emphasis on Peterson putting together a strong performance as this could be the final chance for him to continue his NFL career with a shot to be the starter. The team is injury ridden in the backfield with rookie Derrius Guice out for the season with a torn ACL, Byron Marshall possibly heading to the season-ending IR, and Samaje Perine currently dealing with an ankle injury.

All of this sets the table for Peterson to get that opportunity he has been searching for to prove that he has plenty left in the tank to not only contribute but play at an elite level.