Adrian Peterson Doesn't Seem To Realize the Minnesota Vikings Should Want Him Gone

In the latest developments surrounding running back Adrian Peterson and the Minnesota Vikings, Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports has reported that Peterson’s agent, Ben Dogra, refused a dinner meeting with general manager Rick Spielman at the upcoming owner’s meetings in Phoenix. ESPN.com’s Ben Goessling added to the news by further confirming what we essentially already knew, citing a league source that says Peterson’s preference is to play elsewhere next season.

Peterson has consistently conveyed doubts and feelings of unease about the Vikings’ organization, which is not shocking since he apparently feels like he hasn’t been supported through his ordeal with the league office over the past six months or so. I’ll leave my full feelings about Peterson’s thin skin and being a “mental midget” aside, but I’ve already devoted plenty of space to that over the past few months.

Recent meetings between Peterson and the team, including a trip to his home in Texas by Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer, were widely painted as the organization attempting to convince the now 30-year old running back that he was wanted back. But I’ve had the opposite view from the start, since the Vikings needed to get a non-media driven feel for Peterson’s wishes, while also conveying what they are willing to do or would prefer to do. I’m assuming those ideas still conflict, starting with Peterson wanting to make his full 2015 salary ($12.75 million) or wanting some sort of guaranteed money that does not currently exist put into the last three years of his contract.

The Vikings will not release Peterson, based on a report from USA Today’s Tom Pelissero that included Spielman’s comments on that idea, so they seem prepared to have a malcontent on their hands if they can’t trade him. Having an aging running back that is primed for a decline in production wouldn’t be good for the Vikings on the field, and if Peterson really wants to be gone he will probably need to agree to restructure his contract to help facilitate a trade.

This situation continues to be on track for a messy-looking divorce. But let’s not pretend that Peterson’s feelings of doubt, uneasiness or outright hatred for the Vikings’ organization aren’t mutual to some degree, despite the best public efforts of virtually anyone involved with the team to produce a different message. Irreconcilable differences are here to stay, until Peterson is gone and plays the decline phase of his career in another uniform.

Brad Berreman is a Columnist/Senior Writer at Rant Sports.com. Follow him on Twitter.