Washington releases RB Adrian Peterson

Peterson spent the last two years in Washington, rushing for nearly 2,000 yards.

The Washington Football Team is going to lean on youth rather than veteran experience at the running back position in 2020. The team announced on Friday that it has released veteran Adrian Peterson after two seasons in Washington.

Peterson was the team’s starter for the last two years, rushing for 1,940 yards and 12 touchdowns on 462 carries (4.2 YPC). He was a productive player on a bad team, but at 35 years old, Washington prefers to rely on its younger backs.

Rookie Antonio Gibson figures to have a big role on offense this season, alongside Peyton Barber and possibly Bryce Love, who missed his rookie year in 2019 with a knee injury.

After releasing Peterson, Washington shared this post on Twitter thanking him for the last two years.

Washington has to trim its roster down to 53 players by 4 p.m. ET, and like many other teams, it is getting ahead of that deadline by cutting players beforehand.