Vikings' Mike Zimmer on Adrian Peterson: 'He's not going to play for anybody else'

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — If there were any questions about the Minnesota Vikings' stance on absent star Adrian Peterson, coach Mike Zimmer answered them Wednesday.

"He's really got two choices. He can either play for us, or he can not play," Zimmer told reporters after the Vikings' organized team activity practice. "He's not going to play for anybody else, and that's just the way it's going to be."

Peterson, 30, has mused publicly since November about wanting a fresh start or even retiring in the wake of last year's legal troubles, which cost him all but one game. But he's under contract for another three years and $46 million — none of it guaranteed — and the Vikings have been steadfast for months that they expect him to be on the team in 2015.

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Wednesday, Peterson was the only one of 89 players on the roster not present for the second session of the team's OTAs, which are voluntary. Zimmer said he's not concerned by Peterson's absence and hasn't spoken to the 2012 NFL MVP recently.

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"I also read (reports that) Adrian told me he wasn't coming to OTAs, which is completely false," Zimmer said. "I know there's a lot of things that are out there. I don't know when he's coming, and we'll just leave it at that."

Peterson risks forfeiting a $250,000 workout bonus by not showing up for OTAs, and the Vikings can begin fining him if he doesn't show up for next month's mandatory minicamp.

The NFL reinstated Peterson on April 16. He spent most of the 2014 season on the commissioner's exempt list after his September indictment on a felony charge for injuring his 4-year-old son while disciplining him with a wooden switch. He pleaded no contest to a reduced charge in November and avoided jail time.

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