Speculation surrounding the Buccaneers and free agent running back Adrian Peterson had all but disappeared – then Instagram happened.
It feels like this topic just won’t go away. It appeared to be dead in the water then out of nowhere, it arises yet again. Could the Tampa Bay Buccaneers end up with future Hall of Fame running back Adrian Peterson on their 2017 roster?
Speaking with Trevor Sikkema on the latest Walking The Plank Podcast, he says there has been no interest whatsoever in bringing Peterson in. If they were going to do that they might as well keep Doug Martin. The topic arose on our show when during the recording Jenna Laine of ESPN dropped this little dime on twitter;
Everybody wants to go hang with @ATTACKATHLETICS now. Quite the group here... pic.twitter.com/ge2dA7RW83
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) March 29, 2017
Now, a lot of professional athletes – teammates or not – work out together. They may have the same strength coach outside of their team. They may have a connection to the location that leads them to the same spot in the off-season. The conversation could’ve ended as quickly as it started – that is until Dirk Koetter was asked about the workout. According to Laine, Koetter told reporters Wednesday he was aware of the workout, but didn’t exactly end there;
"“I’ve seen Adrian Peterson many times — one of the best running backs to ever play,” Koetter said. Then, after a long pause, he added, “I’m anxious to talk to Jameis and ask him about how his workouts went.”"
Yes, the coach who predicates his offense on the run game and ability to run the play-action is now “anxious” to see how a workout went between his franchise quarterback and the most dynamic running back of this generation who just so happens to be a free agent and specifically named the Bucs as a team he’d like to play for?
In the immortal words of the C + C Music Factory, “things that make you go hmmm…”
According to Joe Bucs Fan, Koetter was not so diplomatic when it came to his expression when the Peterson questioning began;
Dirk Koetter almost struggled trying to contain his excitement when the subject of Jameis/Adrian Peterson came up.
— JoeBucsFan (@JoeBucsFan) March 29, 2017
And to top it all off, he wasn’t exactly committed to saying Doug Martin is their guy moving forward like he did last year when Martin was on the verge of becoming a free agent;
Koetter "I'm a Doug Martin fan but when you know you're not gonna have him for 3 weeks, how do you do the reps?" No decision been made
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) March 29, 2017
#Bucs coach Dirk Koetter says he's a "Doug Martin fan." No definitive statements on if he'll be on the team, if health continues improving
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 29, 2017
A lot of times, when there’s smoke, there’s fire. However, we are in the season of smoke-screens galore so temper any and all enthusiasm. All we know right now is that the door is still open for Adrian Peterson and the Buccaneers to join forces in an attempt to make a run in 2017 for a championship.
I wouldn’t expect a decision to come from Peterson or any team for a little while, possibly until after the draft. If the Buccaneers find themselves in a situation where they take a running back in the later rounds that will need time to develop, Peterson may become a very intriguing option to bridge the gap. Peterson still appears to be in phenomenal shape – as usual – and would be the quintessential low risk/high reward signing of the off-season.
Next: Jameis Winston On His Way To Becoming Greatest QB In Bucs' History
Buckle up, folks. This ride may get interesting.