Peterson’s rehab ahead of schedule
Running back’s return would give Vikings’ offence boost it needs for push to playoffs
Do the Minnesota Vikings need Adrian Peterson in the lineup? Yeah, like Justin Trudeau needs better eulogy judgment.
The Vikings still possess one of the league’s nastiest defences, but they’ve lost five of their past six and, at 6-5, have fallen from the top spot in the NFC North, in large part because their offence is in dire need of a run-game boost.
Peterson, the most breathtaking NFL running back this century, surely would provide that.
He has been sidelined since Week 2 after tearing the meniscus in his right knee in a win over Green Bay. The club placed him on injured reserve, hoping he could return in December.
On Tuesday, reporters spotted Peterson running short sprints off to the side as the team practised.
“Head athletic trainer Eric Sugarman watched closely before the two walked inside toward the locker-room,” the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported.
Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer said later that Peterson is doing well.
“He’s probably ahead of schedule, I guess. I don’t know,” Zimmer said.
Minnesota plays host to 10-1 Dallas on Thursday.
After losing in Detroit last Thursday, the Vikings now trail the division-leading Lions (7-4) by a game. Worse, they have the Green Bay Packers (5-6) hot on their heels after Green Bay’s 27-13 victory Monday night in Philadelphia.
TENT EXPLAINED: So what, exactly, was Aaron Rodgers doing in that dark, makeshift tent on Green Bay’s sideline on Monday night?
Stop snickering. It wasn’t because his eyeballs were floating or because Rodgers had an upset stomach.
What happened was he pulled his left hamstring and hobbled on it throughout the rest of the game.
“I just didn’t want to be getting it taped up on television,” Rodgers said, per ESPN.com. “But obviously when I walked out and saw the camera right in my face, I knew there was probably some sort of mini-story growing.
“But no, I had to drop my drawers a little bit to get taped up and just wanted to do it in the privacy of that tent.”
KESSLER RETURNS: Cleveland (0-12) won’t win again this week, take it to the bank. It’s their bye week. Ha.
Rookie quarterback Cody Kessler has been concussed twice since late October, but surprisingly he has practised the past two days.
“As a competitor, I want to be out there, always,” Kessler said Tuesday. “If I am cleared and they say I am OK, then I always want to be out there and be ready to go. There are things you can’t prevent sometimes when these things happen. It is a violent sport.”
Kessler suffered the second concussion a week ago Sunday. He sat out this past Sunday’s loss to the New York Giants.
“I felt symptom-free all week,” Kessler said.
But kid, aren’t you concerned about rushing back so quickly after two concussions? Kessler answered by saying he talked at length with team medical personnel.
“That is what I asked them: I said, ‘I feel fine. I don’t feel the symptoms as I did last time,’ ” Kessler said.
“Joe (Sheehan) and some of the doctors just said everyone is different. Every concussion every time you get one is different, which I understood. This time, I think initially it was a little more violent. But after that, going through the protocol week and even that night, I felt fine and felt a lot better.”
Robert Griffin III, Cleveland’s starting QB to begin the season, lasted less than one game before fracturing the coracoid bone in his left shoulder. On Monday night he was fully cleared to return.
Veteran Josh McCown is Cleveland’s other QB, who has been starting in Kessler’s and Griffin’s stead.
“I will make a decision about which way we are going as we go through the (bye) week,” head coach Hue Jackson said.
SUSPENDED AGAIN: The NFL suspended backup Buffalo OT Seantrel Henderson for the second time this season for violating the league’s program and policy on substance abuse.
The first one was for four games without pay. This one’s for 10.
Henderson suffers from a severe case of Crohn’s disease and admittedly smokes marijuana to cope with the pain.