National Football League

Adrian Peterson likely to do his best to sway Vikings to trade him

Published Apr. 16, 2015 3:32 p.m. ET

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Mike Garafolo

In notifying Adrian Peterson he was reinstated Thursday, the NFL declared the veteran running back "may participate in all scheduled activities with the Vikings."

That doesn't mean he will.

The Vikings will open their offseason program in Minnesota on Monday, when all players can take part in voluntary workouts at the team's facility. If everything were hunky dory for Peterson, he might participate in part or all of those activities. However, it's clear by now he's not thrilled with the way the team -- particularly chief operating officer Kevin Warren -- handled his situation last year. He believes Warren was in cahoots with the NFL to keep him off the field, and that has been the crux of his and his agent Ben Dogra's gripes with the team of late.

Peterson also has no financial incentive to be in Eden Prairie, Minn., on Monday. He has a $250,000 workout bonus, but unlike most bonuses, his is tied only to the Vikings' organized team activities and mandatory minicamp. The team's OTAs don't begin until May 26, so that's when Peterson will start losing money if he's not in attendance.

In the meantime, Peterson and his camp will likely continue to ratchet up any leverage they can muster in an attempt to get him traded to another team, with the Arizona Cardinals one of the clubs that would be interested in his services and vice versa.

The NFL Draft, which begins two weeks from Thursday, is a decent motivator to make deals happen. It would seemingly serve both sides well to facilitate a trade before or during the draft. The Vikings could get immediate return for Peterson in the form of a draft pick (or picks) this year, and Peterson could get to a desired location before that team perhaps makes a move to select a rookie running back.

However, the Vikings' hard stance hasn't changed. Publicly, they've said they are looking forward to his return. In fact, that's exactly what was in the team's statement moments after Peterson was reinstated Thursday: "We are looking forward to Adrian rejoining the Vikings."

Privately, the wording has been a lot stronger. Sources have told FOX Sports the team has made it clear to Peterson's camp that he will "play for (the Vikings) or nobody this year." The team believes it doesn’t owe Peterson an apology for paying him $12 million last year and is more than doing its part by offering to pay him the full $13 million he's owed for next season. The Vikings believe the 2012 NFL MVP’s redemption story lies in the city that's been his NFL home since they drafted him seventh overall in 2007.

It will be a while before they get Peterson to see things that way -- if at all. At some point, the team will have to decide if it's worth the trouble of having a disgruntled Peterson hanging over its 2015 season. That point won't be Monday, not even after Thursday's reinstatement. All that development did was make it clear to prospective buyers that Peterson faces no additional discipline.

That's a good development for all involved, though it doesn't change the timeline for this situation. The drama will continue through next week and at least half of the one to follow -- all while Peterson will likely remain absent.

Beyond that, who knows?

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