The Washington Redskins signed Adrian Peterson to a two-year deal after his surprisingly productive season in 2018, but the veteran running back may not be happy with the role the team wants him to play.
For Week 1 at least, the Redskins don’t want Peterson to play any role at all. They are planning to make him inactive against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, according to Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.
Washington head coach Jay Gruden has said for weeks that 2018 second-round pick Derrius Guice, who missed his rookie season last year with a torn ACL, will be the team’s starting running back and the focal point of the offense. Gruden also would not commit to Peterson being active in Week 1, and there have been reports that he wanted to cut the 34-year-old in the preseason but was overruled.
Peterson proved he can still be productive even at age 34 by rushing for over 1,000 yards and scoring seven touchdowns last season, but he’s clearly not Gruden’s guy. We can’t imagine he will be happy being a healthy inactive every week, so it could be a matter of time before he forces his way out of Washington.
