Adrian Peterson’s Case For MVP

Adrian Peterson is the obvious choice for MVP.

What he has accomplished this season off an ACL and MCL injury is so unprecedented it may be the greatest comeback sports has ever seen. It would be one thing if Peterson just came off his late-season injury and rushed for 1,000 yards, which would be acknowledged by fans as an acceptable season, but that’s just not Adrian Peterson – he’s incredible.

To put Peterson’s season in perspective, look at the table in this recent ESPN article by blogger Kevin Seifert.

It is worth mentioning that Jamaal Charles had a great season coming off his injury, but it is equally fair to note he had three more months to recover than Peterson. While fans should take notice of Charles’ season, it is not even in the same category as Peterson’s season.

Now, back to Adrian Peterson. The man has a killer smile, work ethic, and reportedly the strongest handshake you’ll ever experience. A coach’s dream, Peterson is the perfect star. Never do you hear him complain about too little carries, lack of offensive help, or deferring blame to his offensive line (see Chris Johnson). He simply goes to work and puts the team ahead of himself, even when he is within single-digit yards of the single-season NFL rushing record. So it should come as no surprise when FOX reporter Pam Oliver asked Peterson how it felt to be nine-yards short of the record after the Vikings 37-34 win over the Packers, Peterson respond with, “What?”

If you took a look at the Vikings huddle, their weapons include Percy Harvin (now on the Injured-Reserve list), Kyle Rudolph, an underwhelming receiver in Michael Jenkins, an inconsistent receiver in Jerome Simpson, Adrian Peterson, and quarterback Christian Ponder. Ponder has been efficient this season with 18 TD’s and 12 Int’s, but 2,935 passing yards against consistent single-high safety looks is not too impressive. Since Harvin’s injury, the only bright spot for the Viking’s receiving core has been the emergence of rookie Jarius Wright. While Wrighthad an impressive 90-yards and 1 TD catch against the Packers Week-17, he has only recorded 322 receiving yards for the season.

The point is that outside of Peterson the Vikings are very limited offensively, so defenses stack the box with eight or nine players and he still gets his yards. For the entire week leading up the their Week 17 matchup, Packers’ defensive players were saying their goal was to stop Peterson from getting the record.

Not once did they say, “We want to hold him under 100 yards, even 50 yards.” Packers inside linebacker A.J. Hawk even acknowledged that “[he doesn’t] think anyone really shuts him down.” So while the Packers did just barely accomplish their goal of keeping him from the record, they still let him rush for 199 yards with 2 TD’s (1 rushing, 1 receiving). So if that is now where the bar is set for NFL defensives approaching Peterson, that is scary.

Surpassing everybody’s expectations but his own (he spoke of reaching 2500 yards earlier in 2012), the circumstances of which Peterson has accomplished his numbers defy all odds, and his numbers speak for themselves. He literally put the Vikings on his back and carried them to a 10-6 record and spot in the playoffs, off a 3-13 2011 campaign. For that reason, he is the most valuable player in the Vikings organization, and in the NFL.