He's Back!

Adrian Peterson is in Minnesota today. It's not for a court case or anything like that. He's in Minnesota for business. Football business. Better yet, the business of playing football.

"I'm returning because I want to. I'm part of this football team and I owe it to the guys that I play with and to our coaches. I was planning to come in this week, and I look forward to getting back on the field. It's what I love to do."

-Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson

Aw. Fine words. That's right. Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson. The clowns in the media that honked on and on for months and months about Peterson having played his last game as a Vikings football player can just...well, they were just wrong. He's back. In Minnesota. To play football for the Minnesota Vikings.

Peterson hasn't practiced since the second week of the 2014 NFL season. It's been about nine months. It feels so much longer. The media made it feel much longer. They claim that they were just doing their job. They really made it worse. When Peterson admitted that he was returning to the Vikings this week he was, of course, asked about his contract. It's what they do. "I'll leave those discussions to my agent, but any player wants to guarantee his future as much as possible," Peterson said. "I'm focused on what I need to do on the field, what I need to do to prepare for the season." Nice.

He's back!

"I've been watching this game from the sidelines for far too long. My teammates and coaches are important to me. Those relationships matter, and I owe it to those guys. I knew I wanted to come in this week. I had a family obligation last week but I'm ready to put on a Vikings uniform again and get back to work."

He looks so great in that uniform.

He's back!

And the NFC North tilted, just a little, away from Green Bay.

Welcome back to football, Adrian!