The Countdown to Kickoff series continues on with a look at Minnesota Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson who will be looking to prove that he still has plenty in the tank for 2016 and beyond.
There are exactly 30 days until the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers open up the 2016 NFL regular season with a Super Bowl rematch. In the meantime, we at NFL Spin Zone are going to profile a player each day as we countdown the days to kickoff.
The Countdown to Kickoff series began with a look at No. 99 Joey Bosa and has continued on everyday since (check out all of the posts here).
Talented players like Ronald Darby, Jonathan Stewart, Melvin Gordon and Carlos Hyde were all strongly considered here, but it was tough not to pick a sure-fire future Hall of Fame running back who wears number 28 to profile here.
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Let’s take a look at Minnesota Vikings superstar Adrian Peterson.
The 31-year-old Peterson is about to enter his tenth season in the NFL. While he has undoubtedly started to approach the age where NFL running backs start to slip, Peterson can still do stuff like this:
Peterson may be a little older than he once was, but make no mistake about it; this guy can still play at an extremely high level.
He is a freak of nature who still shows an elite-level combination of speed, power and quickness with the ball in his hands. He also has the best ball carrier vision in the NFL, consistently making smart and quick cuts to make defenders miss.
The Vikings have an extremely talented team with massive upside on both sides of the ball. As great as quarterback Teddy Bridgewater can be, Peterson is still clearly the most important part of their offensive attack.
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In fact, Peterson looked as good as ever last season. At 30-years-old, he led the NFL in carries (327), rushing yards (1,485) and rushing touchdowns (11). In an era where the passing game is king, Peterson continues to truck along as the most talented and productive back in the NFL.
Even someone as incredible as Peterson can not keep this up forever. There are a lot of recent examples of high-impact running backs taking a major step back as they approach their thirties. That being said, Peterson appears to be the exception to the rule.
Sure, we can probably expect his raw talent and ability to fade a bit in the next couple of years, but Peterson proved last season that he still has it.
It will be extremely interesting to see how Peterson comes back after a 300-carry season at his advanced age for his position, but I learned a long time ago not to bet against him.
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The Vikings are going to continue to ride Peterson as the focal point of their offense in 2016, and expecting anything less than elite-level production from him would be absolutely foolish.
Even at 31-years-old, Adrian Peterson is the most talented running back in the NFL and a hugely important part of the Super Bowl contending Vikings.