Adrian Peterson wouldn’t make the New England Patriots any scarier

Adrian Peterson’s visit to the New England Patriots on Monday has NFL analysts talking about the offensive potential, but it’s really no big deal.

Former Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson will be taking his first free-agent visit Monday with the New England Patriots, per sources. Because it’s attached to the Patriots, the instant analysis already started rolling in about how incredible the Pats could be if they added Peterson to an offense that has already made some improvements.

The key to understanding the Patriots offseason, however, is that the team has already made their most dangerous moves. Adrian Peterson is most certainly the biggest name in the free agent market and, if he were to sign, he would be the biggest name on the roster below Brady. Peterson jerseys would sell like hotcakes at Gillette Stadium, and it would be a PR win for a team that doesn’t need any help there at all. When it comes to the field, however, Peterson’s addition is being overblown.

Last season, Peterson rushed 37 times for only 72 yards for an anemic 1.9 rushing yards. Coming off of a torn meniscus at the age of 32, AP’s best days are not only clearly behind him, but it’s entirely projection to believe there’s anything even positive ahead. Is it possible Peterson could return to form? Absolutely. In fact, he’s done it before, returning from a missed season in 2014 to lead the NFL in rushing in 2015.

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It’s not fool’s gold at all to think that Peterson has something left, but it’s also not anything to rely on. Which is why anyone making a huge deal of Peterson signing with New England, or anywhere for that matter, is nothing more than spilled ink. The same can be said of someone signing Jamaal Charles. The upside is certainly there, but no team should be relying on either back contributing anything meaningful.

As stated earlier, the Patriots already made their biggest move when swapping a first round choice to the New Orleans Saints for Brandin Cooks. The elite wide receiver gives the Patriots a way to stretch the field for pennies on the dollar, since Cooks is still on his rookie deal for the next two seasons (and even then the Patriots have an option). Brady hasn’t had a player like Cooks to throw to since Randy Moss was on the roster, and together with Gronk, it’s the best one-two punch in the NFL for a team that already won the Super Bowl last season.

The road for teams like the Chiefs and Steelers and Raiders already went through Foxboro to claim the top of the AFC anyway, but no one needs to buy into some panic that Peterson would make them any tougher than they already were. It’s all projection for the running back at this point, and the Patriots were already going to be as tough as possible anyway. Expecting this move to make them better or worse is to get caught up in the hype of the player’s name and history.