Adrian Peterson is a former NFL MVP, but he is on his sixth team since the Minnesota Vikings drafted him in Round 1 in 2007.
Peterson wasn’t even on an NFL roster to start the season. It was only the injury to Derrick Henry that provided him an opportunity to chair the Tennessee Titans’ running back by committee.
At age 36 and his last 1,000-yard rushing season coming in 2018, it would be a safe presumption to think Peterson’s best days are behind him and all he has is his reputation when he suits up in the NFL in 2021.
However, Houston Texans defensive end Jonathan Greenard and his teammates aren’t taking any chances when it comes to Peterson, who has provided the Titans with 18 carries for 42 yards and a touchdown in his first two games back.
“It was the same when we played Detroit last year,” Greenard said. “We understood that it’s AP at the end of the day. When we were first running out there, he’s running full head of steam like he was as a rookie. He’s going to bring it.”
Peterson provided the Lions with 15 carries for 55 yards and two touchdowns, albeit the Texans prevailed 41-25 on Thanksgiving at Ford Field.
“He’s a competitor,” said Greenard. “Everybody knows that. Their team is a competitive team, obviously with where they are in the league and who they ran and what their style of play is. So, they are going to continue to try to impose that on our defense and we got answers for it.”
The Texans take on the Titans Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Central Time from Nissan Stadium. Tennessee at 8-2 is looking to put more distance between themselves and the 5-5 Indianapolis Colts, who are in second place in the AFC South. The Texans are in last place while the Jacksonville Jaguars have control of third place with a 2-7 mark.