Charean Williams of the Star-Telegram, citing a team source, reports that the Cowboys are “not a fit” for veteran RB Adrian Peterson, despite some speculation that they could pair him with Ezekiel Elliott.
Some questioned whether Peterson would be willing to take less money and accept a smaller role to join the Cowboys.
Beyond that, Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones said Tuesday that he doesn’t expect them to be big players in free agency this year.
“I don’t expect us to be big players for other team’s players, but obviously we want to see where our guys are and they’ve got to see where they are in terms of what their market may be,” Jones said. “That certainly will influence whether we can sign some of our guys back. It’ll depend on what their market is.”
Vikings announced earlier in the day that they will not exercise Peterson’s 2017 option, which means he will become an unrestricted free agent next week.
“Adrian is an important part of the Minnesota Vikings organization,” said Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman. “We will continue to have conversations with his representatives and leave our future options open while determining what is best for both parties moving forward.”
It was clear that the Vikings weren’t going to keep him at his current price, but there was at least some hope that they could reach an agreement on a reduced salary that would allow him to be back in Minnesota next year.
Peterson is now in a position to test the free agent market for the first time in his career. Teams like the Raiders, Packers, Giants and Buccaneers have all been tossed out as speculative landing spots for the Peterson, but we’ll have to see how his market develops.
Peterson, 31, is a former first-round pick of the Vikings back in 2007. He was entering the final year of his three-year, $44 million contract that included $20 million guaranteed and was set to make a base salary of $11.75 million to go along with a $6 million roster bonus due on March 11.
In 2016, Peterson has rushed for 72 yards on 37 carries (1.9 YPC) to go along with three receptions for eight yards receiving and no touchdowns over the course of three games.
We have him featured in our Top 100 – 2017 Free Agents list.
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