In the early hours of Wednesday morning, the Minnesota Vikings decided to place running back Adrian Peterson on the "Exempt/Commissioners Permission List", thus removing him from the active roster. The team’s statement was initially tweeted out by NBC Sports. You can see that statement below courtesy of @NBCSports.
This is in response to the backlash the organization was facing by deciding to reactivate the embattled running back after he turned himself in to face child abuse charges in Texas over the weekend.
He was deactivated from the roster during the Vikings Week 2 loss to New England on Sunday, but was reinstated on Monday which drew a ton of heat from people across the country.
In between his arrest and Monday's initial reinstatement, Peterson was hit with another round of child abuse allegations from the mother of one of his other children.
Vikings management has been heavily criticized for their public support of Peterson, and it wasn't until team sponsors had begun pulling their support for the franchise that they finally decided to do the right thing.
Even if the former Oklahoma standout is acquitted of the charges he faces, keeping him off the roster is the right thing to do. It takes away the distraction to the team, and it allows Peterson to focus on his legal defense, and get his priorities in order.
It will also allow time for him to reflect on his alleged transgressions. His first court appearance is scheduled for October 8th.
The 29-year-old Peterson was looking to bounce back from one of his worst rushing seasons statistically in his career finishing with 1,266 rushing yards. The only season worse than that for him was the year that he tore his ACL back in 2011. The Minnesota Vikings travel to New Orleans this weekend for a big NFC showdown with the 0-2 Saints.