Vikings

UPDATE: Adrian Peterson Officially Signs With Saints

Photo Credit: Kyle Hansen

Initially reported by Ian Rapoport of NFL Network and confirmed Tuesday morning by ESPN, the New Orleans Saints will sign former Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, who’s been a free agent since Minnesota cut him in early March.

This is a somewhat surprising development after earlier reports indicated that Peterson was unlikely to sign before the upcoming draft. The 32-year-old back — Minnesota’s all-time rushing leader — had met with New England, Seattle Seahawks and New Orleans but left each place without a deals. Evidently, however, the Saints were intrigued enough to pursue a deal before the upcoming draft, which is stocked with running backs.

With a reported salary guarantee of $3.5 million in Year 1 of the deal, Peterson is making less than 20 percent of what he was scheduled to make in Minnesota before the Vikings pulled the plug. He can make over $8 million with incentives in 2017, but his 2018 base salary (also $3.5 million) is not guaranteed, according to ESPN.

While Peterson’s camp had indicated that he desired to play with a contender — perhaps a team like the Seahawks, Raiders or Giants — the Saints are not exactly poised for a Super Bowl, having gone 7-9 each of the past three seasons. On the flip side, they possess a likely Hall of Fame quarterback in Drew Brees and have never struggled to create offense, making them a tough team to beat even with a poor defense.

“On offense, it goes without saying that the Saints are really solid behind Drew Brees,” Peterson told ESPN. “I feel like my skill set can make them even more dominant as a unit. They have a great offensive line, which is something that stood out to me as well. I could tell from talking to head coach Sean Payton over the last two weeks that he did his due diligence in evaluating how I could contribute. I also did a lot of homework on the defense as well. While I know that injuries have played a role in performance, I also see areas of potential with a lot of younger guys having the ability to step up. Lastly, it goes without saying that the Saints have an amazing fan base and I look forward to making them proud and creating everlasting memories.”

Not only do the Vikings have a history with New Orleans, losing to them in the 2009-10 NFC Championship Game (in part due to Peterson’s fumbles), they also face the Saints on Monday Night Football to begin the 2017 season.

Expect the upcoming months to lead to endless speculation about how fans will receive Peterson in his return to Minnesota.

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