EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Before we get into the football ramifications of Adrian Peterson's indictment in Texas on charges of reckless or negligent injury to a child, let's make something clear: That Peterson will miss Sunday's game against the New England Patriots, or that he won't be on the field to score points for fantasy football owners, is not the most important part of this story.
The Minnesota Vikings reacted swiftly and decisively in deactivating Peterson for Sunday's game. Peterson's attorney, Rusty Hardin, and his uncle, Chris Peterson, said the 2012 NFL MVP will cooperate with authorities in Texas. As much as we all enjoy football games, that the team and player are putting the legal process in front of it should say plenty about what really matters here. (Update: Peterson turned himself in to Texas authorities early Saturday morning.)
That said, there is still a game to be played Sunday, and the fact the Vikings won't have their best running back against a team that gave up 191 rushing yards last week does have an effect. They'll likely start running back Matt Asiata, who ran for 115 yards in the season finale last year when Peterson sat out with a sprained foot, and rookie Jerick McKinnon could see a bigger role. Asiata averaged 4.9 yards per carry in the preseason and has won the Vikings' confidence as a strong, between-the-tackles runner. As much as the Patriots' run defense struggled to stop Knowshon Moreno and Lamar Miller in a loss to the Miami Dolphins last week, Asiata and McKinnon could still have a productive day.
The other effect Peterson has, of course, is how much attention he commands from defenses. Six of his 21 carries came against eight-man fronts last week; only the Baltimore Ravens' Bernard Pierce had more carries against an eight-man front in Week 1, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The Vikings faked handoffs to Peterson on Cordarrelle Patterson's two jet sweeps last week, and without Peterson on the field, defenses can devote more attention to Patterson and possibly avoid committing an extra defender to the run. The Vikings have still managed to average 4.57 yards per carry in games Peterson has missed since 2007, according to ESPN Stats & Information, but there's little doubt their offense will take on a different configuration Sunday.
Time will tell how long Peterson will be out, as the legal process develops and the NFL weighs in on the developments at some point. But in the short term, Peterson being out for Sunday's game means the Vikings will have to adjust how they do things against the Patriots.