Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Adrian Peterson has been one of the hottest names in rumors throughout the NFL this offseason, and he is still being talked about as the 2015 NFL Draft is set to get underway. He has made it very clear that he wants the Minnesota Vikings to trade him, but the Vikings haven’t shown much interest in moving him unless they get blown away with a trade offer. There are still some who believe the Vikings could end up dealing Peterson during the draft, and there is a replacement that they could get in the draft who would fit perfectly in Minnesota.
Georgia running back Todd Gurley‘s knee checked out just fine during medical rechecks a couple of weeks ago, and it has helped his draft stock rise in a big way. He could end up being selected with one of the top 10 draft picks, but there is also a chance that he could slide to the Vikings with the No. 11 overall pick. Could the Vikings draft him to replace Peterson and move on from this current era?
One thing is for sure about this entire situation; unhappy players are not good to have in the locker room. Peterson is a professional, but that doesn’t mean that he will remain a great teammate or give everything he has on the field. That is a major concern, and it might not be one that the Vikings truly want to risk.
Selecting Gurley with the No. 11 pick and then turning around and trading Peterson away might very well be their best option. The Dallas Cowboys are one team that could be in play with the No. 27 overall pick, but they would have to give up more than that to get Peterson. Jerry Jones has previously mentioned that he would love to have Peterson on the Cowboys’ roster, and Peterson has made it even more clear that he would love to play in Dallas.
Gurley ended up playing in just six games during his junior season last year, rushing for 911 yards and nine touchdowns on 123 carries. He totaled 3,285 yards and 36 touchdowns on 510 attempts throughout his career at Georgia and had a career 6.4 yards per carry average.
He has received comparisons to both Peterson and Marshawn Lynch throughout the draft process. Peterson has been an extremely dominant back throughout his NFL career due to a perfect combination of speed and strength, and Gurley has a very similar combination himself. Minnesota would be able to build around second-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and Gurley long term, which would be very important for their offense.
Expect to see the Vikings consider Gurley with pick No. 11, but it will all depend on whether or not they want to take a risk with Peterson. If they truly believe that he will come back and give everything he has for them once again in 2015, then they are going to use the pick on another area of need. On the other hand, if they take Gurley, then expect to see them deal Peterson.
No matter what ends up happening, the Vikings are going to have a much more dangerous rushing attack in 2015.
