Adrian Peterson Set to Enter the Boxing Ring

Legendary Vikings RB
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson jogs onto the field before the start of the Minnesota Vikings game against the Indianapolis Colts at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday, Dec, 18, 2016. (Pioneer Press: John Autey)

Throughout his NFL career, Adrian Peterson was known for his freakish athletic ability. From his ability to make defenders look silly on magical cuts, to his seemingly miraculous comeback from torn ACL and MCL in 2012, Peterson proved himself to be among the pantheon of the most talented RBs in NFL history.

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Now, Peterson looks to trade in his cleats for his gloves as he enters the boxing ring. He is on the undercard for the Social Gloves 2 event on July 30th and is slated to take on another former NFL running back, Le’Veon Bell. The main event features YouTubers Austin McBroom and AnEsonGib.

It wasn’t too long ago when both these players were in the conversation of best running back in the league. In 2015, Peterson made his last All-Pro team with 1485 rushing yards and 11 TDs. Two years later, Bell was an All-Pro for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2017 with 1291 yards and nine TDs. On top of his 2017 rushing numbers, Bell also had 85 receptions for 655 yards and a pair of receiving touchdowns.

In recent years, a transition from the NFL to boxing has been all the rage. As recently as May, another former All-Pro running back scored his first pro boxing victory. Frank Gore landed a right cross on Yaya Olorunsola that sent him tumbling to the canvas.

https://twitter.com/frankgore/status/1525669259304738816?s=20&t=SaRowME3MmZyPQmv6UUfZA

Adrian Peterson has opened up as the early underdog in the match, but the two match up fairly similarly. Both are listed as 6’1 on Pro-Football-Reference. Bell has a slight weight advantage, listed at 225 pounds compared to Peterson’s 220 pounds. Bell is obviously significantly younger than Peterson as well, at 30 years of age compared to Peterson’s 37.

While neither of these former All-Pros have formally announced their retirements from football, it’s difficult to imagine either of them going from boxing training straight to a football field after the fight. The NFL will be mid-training camp when this fight takes place at Crypto.com Arena. Peterson has expressed his desire to retire as a Minnesota Viking when the time comes, but at this point, it must be assumed this will just be a formal one-day contract. No matter what, Vikings fans will certainly be keeping their eyes on this fight as it approaches.

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