After spending his first 10 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, the Adrian Peterson era was over this past season when the team decided not to pick up his $18 million option.
Peterson is now headed south and agreed on a deal with the New Orleans Saints, worth a base salary of $7 million and $8.25 maximum in roster bonuses and incentives. The contract will be a one-year deal plus a one-year option that will pay him $3.5 million guaranteed this next year ($1 million salary and $2.5 million signing bonus).
New Orleans already has Mark Ingram at running back, but adding Peterson to the lineup for a committee backfield will only strengthen Coach Payton’s offense.
“I am excited to be joining the New Orleans Saints. I’m really looking forward to this opportunity. Most importantly, I chose this team because it just felt right within my spirit. Additionally, my wife and family added their confirmation with the same feelings.
On offense, it goes without saying that the Saints are really solid behind Drew Brees. I feel like my skill set can make them even more dominant as a unit. They have a great offensive line, which is something that stood out to me as well. I could tell from talking to head coach Sean Payton over the last two weeks that he did his due diligence in evaluating how I could contribute. I also did a lot of homework on the defense as well. While I know that injuries have played a role in performance, I also see areas of potential with a lot of younger guys having the ability to step up. Lastly, it goes without saying that the Saints have an amazing fan base and I look forward to making them proud and creating everlasting memories.”
Interesting enough, the Saints play the Vikings in Week 1 as part of ESPN’s Monday Night Football doubleheader, so we’ll be seeing AP against his former team out of the gate.
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