Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Sports
Sports

Adrian Peterson’s NFL Future in Doubt With Lingering Child Abuse Charges

Posted byBy Curtis Bunn | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

images-1Some believe Adrian Peterson will not play a game this NFL season, while others contend he might have played his last game of an illustrious career. That’s how serious the child abuse charges are against Peterson in the spanking incident involving his 4-year-old son.

The Vikings are done with the superstar running back, team sources told ESPN. The team muffed its response to the charges by sitting him for the season opener, then activating him for the second game, only to two days later put him on the commissioner’s exempt list.

Even if Peterson reaches a plea deal on a child abuse charge with Texas prosecutors, the NFL will severely discipline him, sources told the network.

Beyond that, Peterson seems to be in denial about his future, according to a Vikings source. The Pro Bowler tweeted Friday that he passed a lie detector test, which served as further proof, according to multiple sources, that he “really doesn’t get it.”

Peterson faces a child abuse charge in Texas for using a wooden switch to spank his 4-year-old son in May. He has said he meant only to discipline the boy and not hurt him.

Since he is on the exempt list, Peterson can collect the remainder of his $11.75 million salary for this season. However, the Vikings have not disclosed whether they plan to activate Peterson at any point this season.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell mentioned child abuse as a violation that the league will harshly punish during his news conference Friday, prompting the Vikings to change their expectations regarding Peterson’s potential return to the team, according to sources.

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top