Adrian Peterson Says He’ll Practice This Week, Envisions Christmas Eve Return To Vikings

Adrian Peterson could return to the field sooner rather than later. According to him, at least.

The Minnesota Vikings star running back underwent surgery for a torn meniscus on Sept. 22, and it has been up in the air whether he’d be good to go during the regular season. But now there’s more clarity, as Peterson himself told DashRadio.com’s DJ Skee that he’ll be back at practice this week.

“I plan on practicing this week to really get my legs under me and get a good feel on where I’m at,” Peterson said, per ProFootballTalk. “So, this week is going to be big for me. My plan and my vision is to be back for the Green Bay game (on December 24). That’s what I’m envisioning. Of course, the perfect scenario would be we win out and I’m able to rest up for three weeks, and be ready for the playoffs. That’s the perfect scenario. But I’ll be out there this week practicing, and I’ll go from there.”

The Vikings are one game out of a wild-card spot in the NFC at 7-6, and even that position isn’t guaranteed, as they have the same record as the Packers but own the tiebreaker after beating them in Week 2 when Peterson suffered the injury. After facing the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, the Vikings have two divisional games against the Packers and Chicago Bears, so they’ll need all the help from Peterson they can get.