Minnesota Vikings: Can Adrian Peterson play until he’s 40?
By Luke Sims
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson has always set lofty goals for himself, but, considering the short shelf life of running backs, is playing to 40 years old even possible?
It’s rare to see a football player continue to be competitive into his mid-thirties.
It’s even more rare to see a player remain competitive into his forties.
Usually the players that do are at quarterback or specialist positions like place kicker and punter. Only a few players are able to be effective at their position that long, even in those positions.
So, when Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson says he wants to play to age forty at a position that is notorious for running the best athletes into the ground far earlier than any other, it’s sure to raise a few eyebrows.
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The physical toll of the position – which Peterson has not been immune from – keeps talented players down. There are only so many miles that can be put on a player’s knees until he succumbs.
But it isn’t just the physical toll that can knock a player down until they can’t get up. It’s also mental. It takes longer to recover after a game as a player gets older. It takes longer to recover from injuries, even the minor ones. It takes more effort to stay in shape.
It’s a constant uphill battle and it’s easier to just take your millions and hang up the cleats for many players.
And yet Adrian Peterson seems prepared for the challenge both mentally and physically.
Recently asked if he was in the best shape of his career at age 31, Peterson told Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that he is. He’s always trying to build on the year before to become something better. Always striving forward.
Peter King at MMQB noted that Peterson believes he can “do this” at a high level until he’s 40, and it’s easy to write it off as the premature bragging of a great player. Except that goes against everything we’ve seen from Peterson in his career.
A true professional, Peterson has left most of the bragging up to other players at his position. He goes into work, puts in the effort, and makes sure he’s doing enough to stay ahead of the curve. He doesn’t come out every year saying he’ll put up 2000 yards, break records, or bounce back from injury.
He just does.
When a guy like that says he may be capable of playing until age 40, people should take notice. He’s not a flash in the pan sensation, he’s the real deal, arguably more so than maybe any other running back in the history of the game.
Peterson is building himself a Hall of Fame career. He could end it at 32, 36, or 40 and it wouldn’t detract from a truly impressive resume that firmly entrenches him with the best of the best a this position.
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40 is a lofty goal that will require great physical and mental fortitude to achieve. If anyone can do it, thought, it’s Adrian Peterson.