Vikings could decide to trade or release him

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. - Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman spoke glowingly and definitively about Adrian Petersons character, his contributions to the team and his ability to return from nearly a full season off to be an impact player again.The only thing Spielman declined to say with certainty was whether Peterson will be back with the Vikings next season.I dont know if theres a team in the NFL that wouldnt want Adrian Peterson on their football team, Spielman said on Wednesday in his first public comments about Peterson since the star running back was suspended by the NFL for striking his 4-year-old son with a wooden switch.If you can name me one ... and I dont want to speak for other teams ... but I know that hes a pretty good football player.Petersons future with the team that drafted him in 2007 has been in question ever since he pleaded no contest to misdemeanour reckless assault for disciplining his son.Peterson missed all but one game this season while addressing the charges and was suspended by the NFL in December for the remainder of the 2014 season, with the league saying he will not be considered for reinstatement until April 15.Peterson will turn 30 in March and is set to count more than $15 million against the Vikings salary cap next season, leading to speculation that Vikings could decide to trade or release him or ask him to take a pay cut.But coach Mike Zimmer said at seasons end that he would welcome Petersons return to the team if he gets his life in order.Spielman stopped short of guaranteeing Petersons return, but his comments about Petersons contributions to the community and perseverance painted the picture of a player who is respected within the organization.There is no doubt or no question on what Adrian Peterson has done for this organization on the field and what he is as a football player, Spielman said. I think people tend to forget, when Adrian did make a mistake, he admitted he made a mistake, he went through the process in the court system. . Hes currently suspended by the NFL right now. But hes done a lot of positive things in this community as well.Spielman also expressed a firm belief that Peterson would be able to return to form as one of the leagues best running backs even after sitting out almost an entire season and hitting 30, the age when many running backs start to experience a fast and steep decline in production. Spielman pointed to 2012, when Peterson returned from a horrific knee injury to rush for 2,097 yards and was the league MVP.Knowing Adrian, I know that he is going to want to come back and play (and) hes going to play at a very high level when he comes back, Spielman said. Im anticipating that, just knowing Adrian from what hes done in the past.Spielman would not comment on Petersons contract situation and said the team cannot be in contact with Peterson during his suspension.The NFL Players Association has filed a lawsuit in federal court in an effort to overturn the arbitrator Harold Hendersons decision to uphold Petersons suspension. An initial court hearing will be held in Minneapolis on Feb. 6.Spielman said they would like to have a more definitive plan for Peterson before free agency and the draft come around to give them ample opportunity to add another running back if he is no longer in purple. The draft will be held starting on April 30.Is there a resolution? Not right now, Spielman said. All I know is where we stand today. Does that change? Im sure its going to change. But until those things change, until things get resolved, right now, we have Adrian Peterson, who is under contract next year, who is currently suspended by the NFL, and thats pretty much all I can go into right now.___AP NFL websites: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Brian Leetch Jersey . While plenty of statistics illustrate Torontos turnaround in the second year of manager Ryan Nelsens tenure, stopping goals is not one of them. Wayne Gretzky Jersey . -- Aaron Rodgers looked fine on the practice field Thursday. http://www.cheapnewyorkrangersjerseys.co...kaczuk-jersey.C. United on Wednesday night. Forward Bright Dike scored the games only goal in the 85th minute on a foggy night in Bradenton, Fla. Chris Kreider Jersey . Its the second of three meetings between these teams this season. Vancouver was a 2-1 winner on home ice December 22nd. Cheap Rangers Jerseys China . Wade is posting a short film on his website next week, with a sneak preview scheduled to come out Wednesday.ZURICH - Defending World Cup champion Spain will travel to Brazil as the No. 1 team in the FIFA rankings, and the host nation will kick off as No. 3. Spain and Germany remain 1-2 in FIFAs monthly standings, while Brazil leapfrogs No. 4 Portugal. Argentina and Switzerland both climb two places to Nos. 5 and 6. Colombia drops three to No. 8. Group D rivals Uruguay, Italy and England are also all in the top 10. Canada remained in the No. 110 position, tied wwith Bahrain and sandwiched between Latvia and Niger.dddddddddddd. No. 11 Belgium is the lowest-ranked of the seeded World Cup teams. The United States at No. 13 leads CONCACAF nations. Algeria, at No. 22, is top-ranked in Africa and No. 43 Iran heads Asian confederation teams. Australia, No. 62, is the lowest-ranked team at the World Cup. Canada tied Bulgaria 1-1 in a friendly last month and played Moldova to a 1-1 draw a few days later. ' ' '