Adrian Peterson continues to defeat Father Time, as the 35-year-old running back received 22 carries in Sunday’s win over the Cardinals, and he apparently believes he isn’t slowing down anytime soon.
Peterson sure isn’t racking up the yards per carry he once did earlier in his career, when he was known for his explosive runs. The 75 yards he picked up on 22 rushes in Sunday’s game isn’t exceptional by any means, but it was effective, and helped keep Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray off the field.
The Lions are Peterson’s fifth NFL team he’s played for during his career thus far, and he’s only under contract through the season. Detroit will pay him a paltry $1.05 million for his services, so it sure didn’t look like Peterson was receiving all that much interest from other NFL teams.
And yet, he still believes he can play until he’s 40.
Whether he means he’ll retire at 40 or play at that particular age, we’re not buying it. He may be a fit in Matt Patricia’s ball-control-oriented offense right now, but few other teams are going to give many carries to a slow-footed back who can only run in between the tackles. Offenses are geared toward being innovative these days, not predictable.
