Adrian Peterson 2009
Adrian Peterson Fantasy Football #1
Adrian Peterson is going #1 in most fantasy football drafts this year, now that Ladainian Tomlinson has hit the wall. Coming into his third year in the NFL and fantasy football, Adrian Peterson is in the prime of his career and will probably never be in a better situation than he is in 2009. In fact, Adrian Peterson or AD (for “All-Day”) has talked like he wants to join the 2,000 yard club in 2009.
I don’t see a remote chance of that happening, given that Brad Childress will give Chester Taylor and Percy Harvin carries this year, but the idea that people seriously talk about such things should give you an indication of the talent Adrian Peterson has.
Adrian Peterson NFL Career
Somehow, Adrian Peterson fell to the 7th spot in the 2007 NFL Draft, even though everyone knew he was the best talent in the draft pool. The Minnesota Vikings, who had signed Chester Taylor to a big free agent contract the year before, couldn’t pass up on AD’s talent and selected him with the 7th pick. Since then, Peterson has taken on the secondary nickname “Purple Jesus” – though Adrian Peterson really needs a better nickname than AD and Purple Jesus.
AD is confusing, because it sounds like you’re messing up his initials (AP), and I’ve made the mistake on this website of called AD “ap” before. It may be that the 6’1″, 219 lb Adrian Peterson is such a talent that he transcends nicknames – somewhat like Barry Sanders.
Adrian Peterson College Career
Those of us who keep track of NCAA football knew that Adrian Peterson was the best player in his college class. The reason Peterson slid in the draft was two-fold: running backs tend to fall in the NFL draft and Peterson had a history of injuries in his college career at OU. After a stellar breakout freshman year with the Oklahoma Sooners, where he finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting to Matt Leinart, Adrian Peterson struggled (to 1,200+ yards) in his Sophomore season with a high ankle sprain, which caused him to miss four games.
In his junior year, Adrian Peterson broke his collarbone in a celebratory dive into the endzone after a touchdown, and he was lost for the regular season. Adrian Peterson did return for a solid if unspectatular game in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, before announcing he would forego his senior season and enter the NFL Draft. So Adrian Peterson came to the NFL with a list of accomplishments and a list of injury concerns.
Nelson Peterson and Adrian Peterson
One thing lost in the Iowa State game when Adrian Peterson broke his collarbone was that his father, Nelson Peterson, was in the stands to watch his son play for the first time since Adrian was 12. In that year, Nelson Peterson went to prison for laundering money associated with drug trafficking. This was not the only troubled event in Adrian Peterson’s young life.
Adrian’s older brother was killed by a drunk driver when Adrian was younger, while his half-brother was murdered just prior to Adrian Peterson’s appearnce at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis in 2007. Perhaps NFL teams viewed Adrian Peterson as a potential troubled athlete, though that has never materialized and didn’t seem to scare off the Wilf Family, owners of the Minnesota Vikings, who have occasionally shown a tendency to avoid players with “character issues”.
Adrian Peterson Fantasy Football
Like many talented rookie runners who are going to be the starter for their team, Adrian Peterson tended to go in the 3rd and 4th rounds of fantasy football drafts his rookie season. This was a huge bargain for fantasy football owners who drafted him, despite talk that Chester Taylor would start the season as the technical starter for the Vikings. Adrian Peterson ran for over 1300 yards and was the NFL Rookie of the Year.
In his second fantasy football season, Adrian Peterson led the NFL in rushing and finished in the Top 10 of most fantasy football scoring formats. Though Adrian Peterson probably didn’t finish #1 in most fantasy football leagues in 2008, Peterson became the consensus #1 pick in a year with a lot of transition in the 1st round. Adrian Peterson has shown to be an elite fantasy football player in his two seasons in fantasy leagues, and the strong Minnesota Vikings Defense keeps the Vikes in games long enough for Adrian Peterson to get his carries. With additions like Brett Favre and Percy Harvin in the offseason, people expect the Minnesota Vikings to be improved off their division winning season in 2008 – and that should translate to even better numbers for Adrian Peterson. Of course, Adrian Peterson’s maturity as a football player and likelihood of being on the field in more third down situations (and getting more catches) also adds to his allure. If the Minnesota Vikings are pounding opponents on their way to a 12-4 season, Adrian Peterson’s touchdown totals should increase.
Fantasy Football 2009
Another reason Adrian Peterson’s fantasy football stock rose in the offseason is because the one player consistently ahead of him in 2008 fantasy football drafts fell. After about 5 years as the consensus #1 fantasy football player, Ladainian Tomlinson had his second straight injury-filled season and finally looked to be slowing down. When you consider that several other big name players in 2008 are falling into the 2nd round in 2009 – Brian Westbrook, Marion Barber – there really isn’t that one player besides Adrian Peterson who combines fantasy football consistency with exciting upside.
DeAngelo Williams was great in 2008, but his team plays a much-tougher 2009 schedule and he still has last year’s #1 pick (Jonathan Stewart) sitting behind him on the bench. Maurice Jones-Drew is finally the lone runner in Jacksonville, but he stands 5’7″ and therefore has durability concerns (not helped by his shin injury in the last preseason game). Frank Gore has been consistent, but the first half of his 2008 campaign scared people off and he’s never been at the (very) highest levels of fantasy football production.
Michael Turner has the 370+ curse hanging over his head, while Matt Forte had only 3 less touches (rushes/receptions combined) than Michael Turner in 2008. (Michael Turner touched the ball 382 times, while Matt Forte touched the ball 379 times). So that leaves Adrian Peterson as the fantasy football #1 pick in 2009.
