December Return In Play For Adrian Peterson?
Adrian Peterson has progressed to the point a return by mid-December is a possibility, Ben Goessling of ESPN.com reports.
The 10th-year Vikings running back has yet to resume running but is targeting this week to begin that part of his rehab. Goessling reports Peterson is making solid progress in an attempt to recover from meniscus surgery done in September. Although he’s exercising caution, as he did when he opted for surgery, Peterson could be back by Week 15 or Week 16.
There hasn’t been much of significance on the Peterson front since his surgery, but we’ve heard the 31-year-old running back has shown well in the weight room recently, with today’s report furthering the signs of progress for the future Hall of Famer.
However, a Peterson return is likely contingent on Minnesota remaining in the playoff race by this time next month. The Vikings snapped a four-game losing streak and are now 6-4 and set for a first-place matchup with the Lions on Thanksgiving Day. The Vikings then face the Cowboys and Jaguars before Peterson’s return range, and the team closes with the Colts, Packers and Bears.
Minnesota has seen its run game falter throughout the season. A year after the Vikings saw Peterson win the rushing title at age 30, they’ve plummeted to the league’s worst rushing attack. The Jerick McKinnon– and Matt Asiata-led backfield is averaging 70.0 yards per game — seven yards worse than the No. 31-ranked ground game. In 2014 with this duo at the controls, the Vikes ranked 14th in rushing.
Their offensive line has taken major steps back since then, and although Matt Kalil and Andre Smith‘s presences on IR have hurt, Peterson was averaging a ghastly 1.6 yards per carry in two games before his injury with those tackles involved. So, this group’s performance could conceivably factor into Peterson’s decision. Asiata and McKinnon are averaging 3.1 and 2.9 yards per carry, respectively.
But a Peterson return would undoubtedly boost the Vikings’ offense. He’s set to make an untenable $18MM in 2017, and his return to the Twin Cities next season is in doubt. Coming back healthy this season, if he’s able to reach that point, could help determine Peterson’s future with the team.
Vikings Cut Ronnie Hillman
Ronnie Hillman‘s time in Minnesota is through. The Vikings announced that Hillman has been waived. To fill his spot on the roster, defensive end Stephen Weatherly has been signed from the practice squad. 
Hillman signed with the Vikings in September after Adrian Peterson was placed on injured reserve. Since then, he has posted a grand total of 50 yards off of 18 carries plus four catches for 43 yards. On Sunday, he had only two rushing attempts, the latest sign that he was being pushed further down in the pecking order.
Hillman‘s deal with the Vikings was a one-year pact worth the prorated league minimum of $760K with no guaranteed money, so the Vikings won’t be on the hook for anything going forward. The Broncos had offset language on the $400K in guaranteed salary owed to Hillman, so they have now been relieved of most or all of that debt.
Weatherly, a seventh-round pick in this year’s draft, signed with the Vikings’ taxi squad after missing the final cut. The Vanderbilt product will slot behind Danielle Hunter and Justin Trattou as reserve bookends behind Brian Robison and Everson Griffen. He could also contribute as an outside linebacker.
Kai Forbath Contract Details
- Kai Forbath‘s contract with the Vikings is for two years at minimum salary, according to Ben Goessling of ESPN.com (Twitter link). However, the deal contains no guaranteed money, so Minnesota will easily be able to escape the pact if Forbath struggles to close the 2016 campaign. Forbath was signed to replace Blair Walsh, who was finally waived after missing several kicks this season.
Latest On Adrian Peterson
- Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is “looking good in the weight room,” according to a team source who spoke with Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Peterson, who suffered a torn meniscus in Week 2, is now eligible to return from injured reserve, though he remains on the shelf. Minnesota’s Peterson-less rushing attack has been the NFL’s worst this year.
Norv Turner Wants To Continue Coaching
After stepping down as Vikings offensive coordinator, Norv Turner is not looking for work at this moment. However, he is still interested in coaching, according to Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com. Once his Vikings contract runs out this winter, Turner would like the opportunity to help mold an up-and-coming quarterback.
Turner says he’ll only return to the sidelines for the right opportunity or, as Schefter and Mortensen put it, “the right team in the right city with the right quarterback.” Given the Vikings’ offensive struggles under Turner, he is probably a stronger candidate as a quarterbacks coach than an offensive coordinator. Turner has had several stops as an OC in the NFL, but serving as strictly a QB coach at the professional level would be a first for him. The only time he ever held that title was with USC from 1981-1983.
Latest On Christine Michael
After the Seahawks cut Christine Michael on Tuesday, the Vikings put in a waiver claim on the running back, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN (Twitter link). The Vikings (5-4) were behind the NFC North rival Packers (4-5) in the waiver order, however, so Michael landed with Green Bay on Wednesday.
Michael would have been a worthwhile pickup for free-falling Minnesota, which has lost four straight after looking like an early title contender during the season’s first five weeks. One of the Vikings’ biggest issues has been their inability to run the ball, as no one has stepped up since Adrian Peterson suffered a torn meniscus in Week 2 against the Packers.
The Vikings’ two most prominent reserves, Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata, have combined for a paltry 3.0 yards per carry on 161 attempts. In-season signing Ronnie Hillman has been even worse, albeit over a smaller sample of carries, with a 2.6 YPC on 16 tries. All told, the Vikes are last in the NFL in both rushing yards (628) and YPC (2.7).
In Green Bay, Michael will make the remainder of his $675K base salary – $277,941 – if he stays on the roster through season’s end, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Notably, Michael went one pick behind fellow Green Bay back Eddie Lacy in the 2013 draft (61st versus 62nd), and it was Lacy’s ankle injury that helped open the door for Michael to join the Packers. Lacy has been on IR for nearly a month, and he won’t be eligible to return until Week 15.
Michael’s contract also includes yardage incentives, and if he provides the Packers’ offense a jolt and ultimately secures that money, it could have a notable effect on a tight NFC North battle led by the first-place Lions. Expecting Michael to make a significant impact is likely unrealistic, though, as the Seahawks parted with the 26-year-old thanks to consistency issues, per Jayson Jenks of the Seattle Times.
After beginning the season in red-hot fashion (45 carries, 232 yards, two touchdowns in the first three weeks), Michael rushed 72 times for a meager 237 yards over his final six games as a Seahawk. He picked up just 10 combined carries in the previous two weeks, with Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable pointing out that Michael has experienced problems reading plays. Nevertheless, he’s superior to the Packers’ healthy options and would have been an upgrade over Peterson-less Minnesota’s contingent of struggling backfield choices.
Zach Links contributed to this report. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Vikings Sign Kai Forbath
The Vikings officially announced the signing of kicker Kai Forbath. It was widely reported yesterday that Forbath would be signed after Blair Walsh was handed his pink slip. 
Forbath was one of several kickers to audition for the Vikings earlier this month, along with veteran Randy Bullock. He left Minnesota without a contract, but the Vikings felt compelled to make a move roughly one week later after Walsh’s latest slip up. On Sunday against Washington, Walsh missed an extra point, his fourth missed XP of the season.
Forbath split the 2015 season with the Saints and Redskins and made only 10 of his 15 attempts. He has only three missed extra points out of 127 tries, but he has yet to kick one from the new 33-yard range. Over the course of four NFL seasons, Forbath has nailed 84.1% of his field goal tries. His career-long came last year when he sank a 57-yarder.
Monroe, Loadholt Not Interested In Vikings
The Vikings’ offensive line has been ravaged by injuries this season. After losing Matt Kalil and Andre Smith early on, the Vikings lost fill-in Jake Long last week, leaving them with the tackle combo of Jeremiah Sirles and T.J. Clemmings. Out-of-house options are limited now that the trade deadline is over and it doesn’t sound like the Vikings will be able to pull two recent retirees off of the couch, either. Eugene Monroe and Phil Loadholt are not interested in playing for the Vikings or any other team this year, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports (Twitter links). 
“No, I don’t care if it was the Vikings or whoever, I won’t be playing ball again,” Monroe said.
Monroe made headlines this offseason for his vocal pro-marijuana stance. After making the media rounds for his cause, he was released by the Ravens, but the team insisted that he was not cut for his activism. Teams like the Giants, 49ers, and Seahawks came calling for Monroe, but the 6-foot-5, 310-pounder turned down every overture as he feared for his health.
“I’m only 29 and I still have the physical ability to play at a very high level, so I know that my decision to retire may be puzzling to some. But I am thinking of my family first right now — and my health and my future,” Monroe wrote in July. “The last 18 years have been full of traumatic injuries to both my head and my body. I’m not complaining, just stating a fact. Has the damage to my brain already been done? Do I have CTE? I hope I don’t, but over 90% of the brains of former NFL players that have been examined showed signs of the disease. I am terrified.”
This spring, the Vikings pushed Loadholt to take a pay cut, but he opted to retire instead. There were conflicting reports as to why the veteran walked away with some saying that he didn’t want to accept a salary reduction and others citing an injury while working out. In any case, Loadholt is apparently comfortable in retirement.
Vikings Sign Rashod Hill
- The Vikings signed offensive tackle Rashod Hill to the 53-man roster off of the Jaguars‘ practice squad, as agent Brett Tessler tweets. Hill will help provide depth in the wake of Jake Long‘s season-ending injury, which has landed him on injured reserve.
Vikings Release Kicker Blair Walsh
After weeks of speculation, the Vikings have given Blair Walsh his walking papers. The Vikings have released the veteran kicker, and are likely replacing him with Kai Forbath, as Tom Pelissero of USA Today Sports tweets. 
Walsh’s struggles have been well-documented and they reach back to last season’s unfortunate mishap in the playoffs. This year, Walsh missed more “easy” field goals and the team decided that they cannot wait any longer for him to get over the yips. Walsh leaves Minnesota with a 75% field goal percentage including one miss inside of 39 yards and two misses inside of 49 yards. Walsh has also missed four extra points from the league’s new extended range. His latest XP miss came during this past weekend’s loss to the Redskins.
Last week, special-teams coordinator Mike Priefer expressed optimism that the team’s kicker tryouts would light a fire under Walsh. He did improve in practice, but the on-field results were still shaky. Now, Forbath will try to do better as he joins his third NFL team.