Vikings' Peterson: ‘I felt like I got a fair hearing for once’

By Brian Murphy
St. Paul Pioneer Press
MINNEAPOLIS - In his first public appearance in Minnesota since a child-abuse charge derailed his career, Adrian Peterson was cheered by a small but loud group of Vikings fans Friday as his fight for NFL reinstatement reached the finish line.
The suspended running back exited the Minneapolis courtroom of U.S. District Court Judge David Doty smiling and holding hands with his wife, Ashley, following a one-hour hearing.
He is suing the NFL to immediately rejoin the Vikings’ active roster after Commissioner Roger Goodell suspended him in November and ruled he could not apply for reinstatement until April 15.
“I felt like I got a fair hearing, for once,” Peterson told reporters. “I just really appreciate all the support from my fans. It feels good to be in Minnesota.”
Peterson declined to speculate about his chances.
“I don’t know. Both parties had good arguments. We’ll see,” he said.
He also was asked whether he wants to return to the Vikings after the team negotiated to banish him to a rarely-used exemption list and accepted Goodell’s punishment, which ultimately sidelined him for all but one game in 2014.
“Of course,” Peterson said into the microphones outside the downtown courthouse.
Cheers erupted.
“Come back! We need you!” one fan yelled.
Doty said he would take the case under advisement but did not indicate when he would decide whether to uphold or overturn an arbitrator’s award affirming Goodell’s suspension.
Players Association lawyer Jeffrey Kessler, who argued on Peterson’s behalf, said he expected Doty to rule “promptly,” or at least before the new league year starts March 10.
Peterson is under contract with the Vikings, scheduled to earn $12.75 million in 2015. However, the team has paid out $36 million in guarantees and likely will ask Peterson to accept a pay cut or restructured deal to mitigate a hefty salary cap hit for a running back who turns 30 next month.
The union is suing the league on behalf of Peterson, whose exile is at the forefront of a broader power struggle between the union and Goodell.
If Doty decides in favor of the league, Peterson will not appeal, according to a person with direct knowledge.
At stake is Goodell’s authority to punish players under the Personal Conduct Policy that owners strengthened in August following the Ray Rice domestic abuse scandal.
Peterson claims the commissioner overreached and retroactively suspended him 15 games over a standard two-game ban for cases involving domestic violence. He also argues Goodell cannot mandate psychological counseling by league-appointed physicians and that Henderson, a former league executive, was biased.
The NFL counters Goodell has wide-ranging authority to impose punishment, Peterson received due process and the courts have no jurisdiction to intervene in its collectively bargained policy.
The Pioneer Press is a media partner with the Forum News Service