Adrian Peterson
Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985) is an American former football running back who played fifteen seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He is widely considered to be one of the greatest running backs in football history. He played college football for the Oklahoma Sooners, setting the freshman rushing record with 1,925 yards in 2004. Named a unanimous All-American that year, he became the first freshman to finish as a runner-up in the Heisman Trophy balloting. Peterson finished his college career as the Sooners' third all-time leading rusher.
For the former Chicago Bears running back, see Adrian Peterson (American football, born 1979).No. 28, 23, 26, 8, 21
March 21, 1985
Palestine, Texas, U.S.
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
Oklahoma (2004–2006)
2007 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7
14,918
14,918
4.6
120
305
2,474
6
He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings seventh overall in the 2007 NFL draft. As a rookie, he set an NFL record for the most rushing yards in a single game (296) and was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. He was then named the MVP for his performance in the Pro Bowl and became only the fifth player in NFL history to have more than 3,000 yards through his first two seasons. In 2010, he became the fifth-fastest player to run for 5,000 yards, doing so in his 51st game.
Peterson tore both his ACL and MCL in a game in late 2011. Despite that, he would return by the start of the 2012 season and end it with 2,097 rushing yards, just nine yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson's single-season record. For his efforts, he received the NFL MVP Award, among others. In 2013, Peterson became the third-fastest player to reach 10,000 rushing yards in NFL history.
In 2014, Peterson was indicted by a grand jury in Texas on charges of reckless or negligent injury to a child that occurred earlier that year, and was suspended for the rest of the season. A free agent coming into the 2017 season, Peterson signed a two-year contract with the New Orleans Saints but was traded to the Arizona Cardinals mid-season before being released following the season's end. Since then, Peterson has played for the Washington Redskins, Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans, and Seattle Seahawks.
Early years[edit]
Peterson was born in Palestine, Texas, to Bonita Brown and Nelson Peterson, who were star athletes in college.[1][2][3] His father was a shooting guard for Idaho State, but his dream of a National Basketball Association career was derailed when a gun that his brother was cleaning discharged into his leg.[4][5] His mother, a three-time Texas state champion at Westwood High School, attended the University of Houston on an athletic scholarship as a sprinter and long jumper.[6] Peterson's best friend was his older brother, Brian. Peterson's father nicknamed him "All Day," because his father said he could go all day.[7]
At age 7, Peterson saw his 9-year-old brother Brian killed by a drunk driver as he rode his bicycle.[7] Around this time Peterson began to deal with his pain through sports and became interested in football.[8]
His father Nelson participated as an assistant coach. Peterson played in the popular East Texas, Anderson County Youth Football Program.[2] When Peterson was 13, his father was arrested for money laundering in a crack cocaine ring.[7]
Professional career[edit]
2007 NFL Draft[edit]
On January 15, 2007, Peterson declared that he would forego his senior year of college and enter the 2007 NFL draft.[71] Coming into the league, he was known as a tall, upright runner possessing a rare combination of speed, strength, agility, size, and vision, along with a highly aggressive running style.[9] His rare talent as both a great breakaway and power runner has often raised comparisons to past legends, including Eric Dickerson, Walter Payton, Gale Sayers, O. J. Simpson, Franco Harris, and Jim Brown.[72] Concerns about his injuries suffered during college were noted by the media and potential NFL teams.[73][8][74][75] He started 22 out of 31 games in his college career and had a dislocated shoulder his first year (although he did not miss any games), a high ankle sprain his sophomore year, and a broken collarbone his final year at Oklahoma.[73] His durability was a consideration for at least two teams in their draft analysis,[75] which impacted selection position. Prior to the 2007 NFL Draft, Peterson was compared by professional football scouts to Eric Dickerson.[76]
Personal life[edit]
One of Peterson's half-brothers was murdered the night before Peterson participated in the NFL Combine.[306] When Peterson was a teenager, his father was sentenced to 10 years in prison for laundering drug money.[307][308] Peterson has six children.[309] His two-year-old son died on October 11, 2013, at a hospital in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, due to injuries sustained during an alleged assault by Joseph Robert Patterson, the boyfriend of the child's mother. Peterson had learned about his son only a few weeks prior to his death, and had never met him.[310][311]
Peterson identifies as a Christian. He spoke of his faith in relation to his injuries, "This is a blessing in disguise. I'll come back stronger and better than I was before. What flashed in my mind was, 'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.'"[312][313]
Peterson is the nephew of former NFL running back Ivory Lee Brown.[314] Peterson is friends with offensive tackle Trent Williams, who was a teammate at the University of Oklahoma and with the Washington Redskins.[315][316] In 2016, he and Williams opened a gym in Houston that includes a soccer field, an MMA training area and an incline running hill.[317][318]
In 2017, a video clip of Peterson went viral as he did a random street interview on how to patiently handle road rage situations without the interviewer knowing who Peterson was until he presented himself at the end.[319]
Peterson appeared in the Season 4 finale of The League.[320]
In 2023 Peterson participated in the ABC reality competition series Dancing with the Stars. Peterson and his dance partner Britt Stewart finished in 11th place.
Legal issues[edit]
On September 12, 2014, Peterson was indicted by a Montgomery County, Texas, grand jury on charges of reckless or negligent injury to a child, after he had used a wooden implement to discipline his 4-year-old son in Spring, Texas, in May.[321] The prosecution in the case alleged that Peterson used a tree branch to beat his son repeatedly on his back, buttocks, genitals, ankles, and legs. Peterson described the implement as a "switch",[321] a form of punishment that was used on Peterson in his own childhood.[322] Photos posted on TMZ.com showed his son's legs with slash-like wounds.[323] Peterson was subsequently deactivated for one game by the Vikings.[324][325]
On November 4, 2014, Peterson pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor charge of recklessly assaulting his son. He avoided a jail sentence after reaching a plea agreement. Peterson was put on probation and also fined $4,000. He was also ordered to undergo 80 hours of community service.[326] Peterson was suspended by the NFL. His 2014 season was over after arbitrator Shyam Das ruled in favor of the NFL on November 18, 2014, saying, "the league can keep Adrian Peterson on the commissioner's exempt list," effectively terminating any possibility the Minnesota Vikings running back would play again that season.[327]
In December 2014, Harold Henderson, the NFL-appointed arbitrator for Peterson's appeal affirmed Peterson's unpaid suspension until at least spring 2015. However, the NFL Players Association said it was "considering immediate legal remedies" to the decision.[328] On August 4, 2016, ESPN reported that the NFL won an appeal in a case against Peterson, reversing a ruling which had overturned Peterson's suspension and fine.[329] In 2018, Peterson admitted that he was still using a belt to discipline his son.[330]
In 2018, Peterson was ordered to repay a Minnesota bank for defaulting on a 2016 loan. In July 2019, a Maryland state judge ordered him to pay another creditor $2.4 million.[331][332]
In 2018, DeAngelo Vehicle Sales LLC, a Pennsylvania loan company, sued Peterson after he defaulted on a 2016 loan and failed to make the full payment of $5.2 million by March 1, 2017.[333] In 2019, Peterson reached a settlement agreement. In January 2021, Peterson was ordered by a New York State Supreme Court judge to pay DeAngelo Vehicle Sales LLC $8.3 million after Peterson defaulted on the settlement.[334] In February 2024, court records were made public that Peterson had not paid any of the $8.3 million owed and that some of his personal assets had been forcibly seized.[335] TexMax Auctions showed many of Peterson's assets up for sale, including his NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and NFL MVP trophies.[336]
On February 13, 2022, Peterson was arrested by the Los Angeles Airport Police for a domestic violence incident with his wife, Ashley, on a Los Angeles International Airport flight to Houston, Texas.[337] Due to the incident, the plane was forced to return to the airport gate and Peterson was removed from the plane. The same day, Peterson posted a $50,000 bond and was released from Los Angeles Airport Police's custody.[338] Days later, Peterson's wife made a statement that at no point during the flight did Peterson strike or hit her but that they had had a verbal argument.[339] The Los Angeles District Attorney's office stated the domestic violence charge against Peterson would be dropped.[340]