The murky situation between the Minnesota Vikings and running back Adrian Peterson does not appear to be getting any clearer.
Peterson initially said through his agent Ben Dogra that he wanted out of Minnesota. When it was clear that wasn't going to happen, the AP camp switched tactics and asked for more guaranteed money. That likely isn't going to happen either. Peterson is set to earn a base salary of $12.7 million and count north of $15 million against the cap in 2015. He is already the highest paid running back in the NFL and it wouldn't make sense for the Vikings to give him a raise at this point.
So what will happen if the two sides fail to find any common ground? It's a question that was brought up to ESPN Vikings reporter ben Goessling in his weekly mailbag.
"Adrian Peterson hasn't been part of the Vikings' offseason workout program to this point - he generally doesn't show up this early, even when things are normal between him and the team - but we're approaching the juncture where his $250,000 offseason workout bonus is at stake. From what I've been told, Peterson's bonus requires him to participate in 90 percent of the Vikings' organized team activities (so essentially, he can miss one), as well as the Vikings' mandatory minicamp. And if Peterson skips the June 16-18 minicamp, the Vikings can fine him up to $72,940, according to the collective bargaining agreement. If Peterson stays away through June, the meter would run north of $320,000 in lost wages or fines, and the Vikings can fine him $30,000 for each day of training camp he misses. Essentially, by August 1, Peterson would have lost more than half a million dollars for staying away. That's a pretty big sum of money - though Peterson lost more than $4 million in wages from his suspension last year - and if Peterson is eventually going to report, he might eventually decide it's best to do so before he loses too much money on a holdout. We'll soon see how committed he is to the idea of staying away from the Vikings, once there's a real financial cost to doing so."
Overall, Peterson has three years and $44.25 million remaining on his contract. Considering he missed all but one game last season and recently turned 30-years-old, it would not be in his best interest to hold out for any extended period of time. However, his displeasure with the organization is apparent and it's unknown whether or not the two sides will reconcile before the season.
