Former Pro Bowl running back Adrian Peterson has rekindled his NFL career with the opportunity to play for the Washington Redskins that came about during the preseason due to injury to rookie Derrius Guice.
However, it was a situation that only came about after the initial roster spot opportunity was turned down by Orleans Darkwa, according to Peter King of NBC Sports.
“If we sign Darkwa, we wouldn’t have signed Adrian,” Redskins senior VP of player personnel Doug Williams said.
The Redskins brought Peterson over to work out after the Darkwa deal fell through, and needless to say, they liked what they saw from the 33-year-old.
“I don’t know what his workout would have looked like at 23 or 24, but I know what it looked like at 33,” Williams told me. “And it was really impressive.”
Regardless of how Peterson got his chance, he has taken full advantage of the situation by proving that he has plenty left in the tank to play at a high level. He has not only shown to be an effective starting running back but has also pushed his way to be ranked fifth in the league with 604 rushing yards and eighth with 75.5 rushing yards per game.
Although the 33-year-old is dealing with a nagging shoulder injury, it hasn't impacted his performance on the field as he tallied more than 90 rushing yards five times with a pair of 100 rushing yard outing this year. Peterson has demonstrated that he can be the workhorse running back that the franchise can depend in the running game as a staple in the offense. Granted, he has had some two disappointing outings, when he is used in a great capacity pushing north of 15 carries it has resulted in some huge performances from him.
Nonetheless, Peterson has put himself back on the map while demonstrating that he still has plenty of mileage on his legs to be a highly productive running back in the league.
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