Adrian Peterson's days as a member of the Minnesota Vikings may have come to an unceremonious end, signaled by a "heated verbal altercation" between Peterson's agent, Ben Dogra, and a member of the Vikings front office at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis.
"He will never play another game for the Vikings," said one person close to the player, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. "It's over."
Such a definitive statement is hard to believe, but the reported fight over Peterson's status makes the growing friction between the sides even clearer.
"The decaying relationship between Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson and the organization took a dramatic turn during the combine last week in downtown Indianapolis: Peterson's agent, Ben Dogra, had to be separated from a member of Minnesota's front office during a heated verbal altercation about the former Pro Bowler, according to numerous sources with knowledge of the situation," La Canfora reports.
"According to the sources, Dogra engaged in a heated exchange with Vikings vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski during which the agent made it clear that Peterson would never play there again. The incident took place during a time when outside parties were in the vicinity. Finally, former Tampa Bay general manager Mark Dominik intervened, separating the men and diffusing the escalating tension, sources said."
That does not bode well for Peterson's chances of returning to the team for next season.
He had already stated his concern over remaining a member of the Vikings - the only NFL organization he's ever been a part of - and rumors had begun to swirl in recent days of his preference to join his home-state Dallas Cowboys for next season - though La Canfora says that's not a "slam dunk" and instead points to the Washington Redskins as a "dark-horse" suitor for Peterson.
"Peterson, who is signed through 2017 and set to make $13 million in 2015, has no intention of playing again for the Vikings, sources said. Peterson, sources said, lost faith and trust in the franchise after a tumultuous ordeal over his child abuse charges that resulted in him missing nearly the entire season on the Commissioner's Exempt List while his legal situation played out."
His deal has $48 million remaining over the next three years and it would cause little harm to the Vikes cap situation to cut or trade him.
Stay tuned, Vikings (and Cowboys) (and Redskins) (and NFL) fans. This is shaping up to be a very interesting offseason.
