Hogs
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- Mar 20, 2019
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USA TODAY Sports
Two years and three days ago, Washington signed running back Adrian Peterson, who was unattached and waiting for a chance to continue his career. Now, he’s entering his third year with Washington, and he’s still going strong — even with a new coaching staff.
“He’s showing exactly what I hoped for, and that’s setting the tone,” coach Ron Rivera told reporters on Sunday. “In a couple of situations where we’re running the ball downhill and you look at some of these defenses, especially when you’re on tape and you see an arm come out, you just know Adrian’s running through that arm. You know he’s going to break those arm tackles. He’s going to pick up four, five, six yards on second down. That’s what you want. That’s what he’s here for — to set the tone, set the tempo for our offense as a physical team.”
Peterson, who has played with and through plenty of injuries over the years, avoided an ankle injury on Sunday.
“Everything is good,” Peterson told reporters. “My left ankle got kind of twisted up and caught. Thank God it came free. That little expression you heard was when it was tweaked and then came free. I was like, ‘Thank you Jesus.’ It could’ve been bad. But, yeah, I’m good.”
Peterson remains very good at what he does, even as he enters his 14th season, and his third in Washington.
“It’s my second home,” Peterson said. “I’m going into my third year. It’s something I was thinking about the other day. . . . The love has already been shown from Maryland to Virginia and even Baltimore. I’m just excited. The fan base here is incredible. They show a lot of support. They remind me all the time how much they appreciate what I do when I’m out there on the field and how I play. I’m just enjoying it and embracing it. God willing it’ll be five more years.”
Five more years would give Peterson a chance to catch Emmitt Smith for No. 1 on the all-time rushing list, if Peterson can stay healthy and productive. He needs 4,139 yard to catch Smith.
It sounds like more than Peterson can muster, but it continues to be unwise to bet against him.