Vikings to Meet with Agents of AP, Terrance Newman…

Another day. Another post about Adrian Peterson’s contract situation with the Vikings… Feels like 2015 all over again.

As I wrote the other day, the Vikings, per general manager Rick Spielman, had yet to discuss Adrian Peterson’s looming/salary cap killing 2017 “contract” (I use that term loosely as this is the NFL, and contracts are nothing more than false promises on paper, like all the Valentine’s I got out of pity in second grade). Considering the importance of both that contract and Peterson’s status on the team, the report seemed surprising, at least to a guy like me who doesn’t understand how football works yet somehow run’s a football website. However, as Spielman promised, that situation would be taken care of by the start of the Free Agency period (Something I capitalized for no reason!), which begins in about two weeks. Apparently, he’s making due on that promise.

According to the Bleacher Report’s Jason Cole, the “reporter” (I’m on a roll with these caps!) from … Bleacher Report, who recently broke the news that a doctor not affiliated with the Vikings or Teddy Bridgewater, had ball parked his return time before the 2016 season. Somehow, that was taken as breaking news (I fault Cole for this) and people started essentially saying that Bridgewater was now “Officially” out for the 2017 season. So, I take most everything that Cole and Bleacher Report says with a grain of salt. Mostly because of what the site used to be (Fan-based content) as opposed to what it is now (Some sort of gigantic, unstoppable force in the sports world), mostly because that’s the business model that I’m using as we speak (However, I don’t know if PatriotsPTSD.com will make sense).

Cole said: 

The agents for running back Adrian Peterson and defensive back Terence Newman will meet with the Minnesota Vikings “to assess what the two sides will do going forward.”

So. Yeah. Pretty much what I said in the title. The Vikings are beginning the process, of what I believe (Based on all the evidence provided) the inevitable divorce of the player that has represented the franchise for the past (near) decade. What evidence? You ask? Well… There was AP going on ESPN to state that he’s “Earned” that $18 million, his tweet about the New York Giants, the fact that free agency starts on the 9th of March and they’re just now getting around to discussing his contract and the fact that Spielman recently said that “regardless of what happens, Peterson will be a Viking for life”. That, to me, sounds like it’s rock kicking time for one of the best running backs of all time.

So, that begs the question… What are the Vikings to do at running back? Continue to check out purplePTSD.com for those answers as we approach the combine, free agency and the draft. In that order.

Oh yeah, there’s also the Terrance Newman component. I almost forgot!

Now, despite all of the talk of Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer’s “Guru-ing” of cornerbacks and the focus that the Vikings have put on that position with high draft picks (Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes, Mackensie Alexander) and free agency (Terrance Newman and Captain Munnerlyn), the Vikings are surprisingly thin at corner going into the 2017 season. Especially should the near 40 year old Newman decide to retire. Now, a lot of that lack of depth has to do with the development (or lack thereof, some would argue) of Trae Waynes, who was the highest drafted of the bunch at 11th overall in the 2015 draft. I would argue that he’s playing/developing right on schedule, he’s just had the luxury of having Newman play in front of him when another first rounder in Xavier Rhodes, had to learn more from his mistakes as he was thrown out there early, as a rookie (Starting six and appearing in 13 games that year). While Waynes does play more on the tentative side, something I believe coach Zimmer hates, he isn’t a BAD player or a bad pick and he has all the tools he needs to succeed.

So, having Newman back in 2017 would definitely help with depth, although the word is that the Vikings have their eye on ANOTHER first round pick, in Cincinnati’s Dre Kirkpatrick, as free agency looms. Kirkpatrick is ranked as the sixth best corner in this year’s free agency market, which could make him a cheap, and valuable, acquisition. Again, depending on Newman’s decisions, or even really, not. Newman has been defying time/reality these past few years and you can’t always rely on a 38 or 39 year old guy to stay healthy, so perhaps Kirkpatrick could end up on the team regardless of what Newman does. But, it would be really nice if he was able to stick around for one more year, as he’s been a great teacher/example for the young guys the Vikings have amassed.

Again, stay tuned for coverage on this and all things Vikings… About five or six hours (On average) after other sites cover the same topics!

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