The upcoming football season is rapidly approaching which means its time to dive into the fantasy aspects. Now that Adrian Peterson has reported to Minnesota for OTAs one might begin to wonder how effective AP can be for this upcoming season? For those fans who love fantasy football he or she knows how crucial it is to land a top talent at the runningback position. The question still remains; do you trust Adrian Peterson to carry your fantasy team after sitting out the majority of last season?
Are The Vikings Playoff Contenders?
One of my golden rules for fantasy football is to never draft a runningback on a bad team. A perfect example of this from last season is Toby Gerhart. Last year fantasy experts drooled over adding Gerhart in fantasy drafts often times in the second or third round, what they forgot to realize is he played for Jacksonville………..Sure Peterson can have a good year if the Vikings are mediocre but the difference between a good and great fantasy team comes down to that one dominating player. Let’s compare Peterson’s stats to the Vikings record in each of the past 3 seasons.
- 2011 Peterson 970 yds., 12 TDs. Vikings Record 3-13
- 2012 Peterson 2,097 yds., 12 TDs. Vikings Record 10-6
- 2013 Peterson 1,266 yds., 10 TDs. Vikings Record 5-10-1
You can see how the Vikings record directly correlates with Peterson’s rushing yards. In 2012 quarterback Christian Ponder was able to put together a fluke season leading the Vikes to the playoffs. Can Teddy Bridgewater do the same in 2015? While Peterson may not be in the prime of his career anymore one could argue this is the best supporting cast he has seen during his 8 year career. With Mike Wallace and Cordarelle Paterson stretching the field, Peterson could find more running room this upcoming season. Then again this all comes down to if you believe the Vikings are contenders. Will they find themselves holding the lead in the 4th quarter giving the ball to Peterson to burn the clock, or will they be playing catch up having to throw the ball 70 percent of the time in the second half of games? Although I may be in the minority on this one I believe Minnesota can contend for a playoff spot. On the heels on an improving Teddy Bridgewater I don’t see any reason why Minnesota can’t contend for a playoff appearance.
Is The Proper Coaching Staff In Place For AP To Thrive In?
The simple answer to that question is yes. Norv Turner may be the league’s brightest mind the game has to offer. Many of you may not know this but Norv was the offensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys in the early 90’s when America’s team won three Superbowls. Turner was also the OC in San Diego when LaDanian Tomlinson had his record breaking season in 2006 rushing for 28 touchdowns. Will Turner bring fourth success in calling plays for Adrian Peterson? You bet. 2014 rookie third round pick Jerick McKinnon averaged 4.8 rushing yards per game last season for Minnesota. Peterson should average 4 yards per carry in Norv’s system barring any health issues, then again he did sit out almost the entire 2014 season, he should be as healthy as ever entering 2015.
Where Does Peterson Deserve To Be Drafted?
The early consensus for Peterson to be drafted is somewhere in the back end of the second round in a average ten team snake draft. While I agree with the draft position I tend to question the current players being ranked ahead of AP. C.J. Anderson, Matt Forte, and LeSean McCoy should not be ranked ahead of him. This is a passing league get your dominating wide out taking a risk on a half back, their a dying bread. In short if a play-maker like Dez Bryant is still on the board when choosing between the two go with the receiver, If halfback is a dire need Peterson has a good of a chance to be a star as any in this upcoming season. For Auction buffs such as myself any bid higher than $40 dollars in an average $200 cap seems to rich for my taking.
