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Film review: Why Adrian Peterson could help Saints offense

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By Josh Katzenstein jkatzenstein@nola.com,
NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

Looking at Adrian Peterson's performance from 2016, it's easy to see why it took two months for him to find a job.

The numbers obviously speak volumes as a 1.9-yard average on his 37 carries in just three games didn't attract any teams. Couple that statistic with Peterson turning 32 in March, and it makes sense why teams didn't want to take a chance on him.

The New Orleans Saints, though, were willing to see if Peterson could return to his MVP form -- or close to it -- and gave him a two-year, $7 million deal. If he plays well, the combination of Peterson, Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara could give the Saints an even more lethal offense.

Looking at Peterson's performance the past two years, not just in 2016, helps explain why the Saints believe the running back is capable of a resurgence, and it'd be fair to think New Orleans' personnel staff viewed Peterson's 2016 campaign as an outlier for a few reasons.

There are plenty of examples of Peterson in 2015 using the one-cut, power-speed combo that has made him a likely Hall of Famer. Other plays show that he's a willing blocker, and some indicate how he could help occasionally as a receiver. When Peterson catches a pass with room to gain speed or evaluate when to juke, he can be dangerous.

However, before completely overlooking Peterson's lost season in 2016, it's worth noting that his performance started to fall off at the end of 2015, too. Even though he led the lead in rushing with 1,485 yards and averaged 4.5 yard per carry, he averaged just 3.6 yards per carry in the final five games, compared to 4.9 in the first 11.

So, if potential suitors were already on the fence because of Peterson's age and injury issues, the late-season dip in 2015 could help explain why he went overlooked for so long.

As for 2016, the Vikings' offensive line was abysmal, which is a key reason he struggled in his three games and why Minnesota rebuilt that group this offseason.

With Peterson missing 13 games due to a knee injury, the Vikings leaned on Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata. McKinnon averaged a career-low 3.4 yards per carry while Asiata managed just 3.3 yards per carry. Both numbers are better than Peterson's small sample size, but still indicate how poorly the offensive line played.

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