One of the big stories to emerge from Monday night’s game between the Vikings and Saints was the seeming frustration of Adrian Peterson about his role in New Orleans’ offense.
During the third quarter of the game, ESPN shared video of a sideline exchange between Peterson and head coach Sean Payton that they say took place towards the end of the first half.
Sean Payton, Adrian Peterson on the sideline pic.twitter.com/MMHfvJ3gcr
— ⓂarcusD (@_MarcusD2_) September 12, 2017
ESPN gave no other context to the video and did not play any audio, so we don’t know what was said. That didn’t stop most parties from concluding that Peterson was yelling at Payton and likely upset about his lack of carries.
Whatever the case, Peterson dismissed the idea that he has any issues with Payton when speaking with reporters after the game.
Adrian Peterson: "There’s no conflict. Let’s not try to spin it like it is. There’s no conflict. I got a lot of respect for coach Payton."
— Josh Katzenstein (@jkatzenstein) September 12, 2017
Peterson: "I could’ve said, 'I love you.' But it’s no issue. We have bigger fish to fry."
— Josh Katzenstein (@jkatzenstein) September 12, 2017
Payton similarly was dismissive of the idea they had a heated exchange.
“We weren’t in any heated exchange,” Payton said after the game, via Nola.com. “I’d tell you if we were in a heated exchange, so why don’t you ask him? I think he was into it; we were all into it. There was none that I can recall, and I’m being honest.”
Peterson also said after the game that at one point he recommended an inside zone running play, and they called it. He also said people were making the wrong assumptions about the video.
The good news is both parties are trying to turn this into a non-issue.
The veteran back only played nine snaps in his first game with his new team. He had six carries for 18 yards in the 29-19 loss against his former team.
