NFL Rumors: San Francisco 49ers Open to Adrian Peterson Contract; Carlos Hyde, Blaine Gabbert Get Vet RB

Feb 27, 2017 03:07 AM EST

The San Francisco 49ers are expected to go on rebuild mode if their free agency bets fall apart. With the speculated Colin Kaepernick trade and the impending exit of Blain Gabbert soon, the Mike Davis team would have a reasonable cap space to bring in someone with a proven track record. This opens the possibility to a Adrian Peterson contract this season.

The Minnesota Vikings had been reluctant to completely commit to a future including Adrian Peterson. The controversial running back has carried the team to countless victories in the past, but it appears that his age and injuries are making him an unfavorable option for next season. Will this be the end of the Adrian Peterson era in the Minnesota Vikings?

Rumors are rife that the San Francisco 49ers are looking into ways to rebuild the squad without plummetting to the bottom of the league. With this in mind, the football team reportedly aims to build a solid group behind Colin Kaepernick - assuming that he remains with them until next season. One of their options is to bolster the running back post. Speculations point to a potential Adrian Peterson contract to possibly help out Carlos Hyde in this role.

While most experts believe that an Adrian Peterson contract may no longer hold much value, the Minnesota Vikings star remains one of the notable running backs in the league. In the list of Top 10 running backs USA Today's the Big Lead, the veteran star ranked second. While the list acknowledged that Adrian Peterson is no longer the football star he was in 2012, the publication also pointed out that his performance in the 2016-17 NFL season still outranked the others.

At the moment, no official comment has been sent by the parties involved in this Adrian Peterson contract rumor to the San Francisco 49ers. For the Minnesota Vikings, the front office seems to keep mum on their running back's future.

"Until I talk to Adrian and talk to his agent, I'm not going to announce anything. But that will get addressed here before free agency starts," shared Rick Spielman of the questions regarding the Adrian Peterson contract in the NFL team. The Minnesota Vikings GM added, "The one thing I'll say is if we don't exercise that option, we always will keep the door open on all of our players."