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Peterson playing against the Green Bay Packers in 2011.
Running back
Date of birth: (1985-03-21) March 21, 1985 (age 28)
Place of birth: Palestine, Texas
Height: 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) Weight: 217 lb (98 kg)
High school: Palestine (TX)
College: Oklahoma
NFL Draft: 2007 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7
Debuted in 2007 for the Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota Vikings (2007-present)
Roster status: Active
AP NFL MVP (2012) 5× Pro Bowl (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012) 5× All-Pro (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012) 2× NFL Rushing Champion (2008, 2012) 3× NFC rushing leader (2007, 2008, 2012) 2× Bert Bell Award (2008, 2012) 2× FedEx Ground Player of the Year (2008, 2012) AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year (2007) AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year (2012) PFWA MVP (2012) PFWA Offensive Rookie of the Year (2007) Diet Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year (2007) Pro Bowl MVP (2007) NFC Offensive Player of the Year (2012) SN Offensive Player of the Year (2012) 2,000 Rushing Yards Single Season Club Hall Trophy (2003) ESPN RISE High School Football Player of the Decade (2000s) Unanimous All-American (2004) First-team All-Big 12 (2004, 2005, 2006) College awards and honors NFL awards NFL records
Rushing yards 8,849 Yards per carry 5.0 Rushing TDs 76 Receptions 177 Receiving yards 1,526 Receiving TDs 4

Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985), nicknamed "A. D." (for "All Day"), "A. P." (his initials) or "Purple Jesus", is an American football running back for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). Peterson was selected by the Vikings with the seventh overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft.

Peterson played college football for the University of Oklahoma, and set the NCAA freshman rushing record with 1,925 yards as a true freshman during the 2004 season. As a unanimous first-team All-American, he became the first freshman to finish as the runner-up in the Heisman Trophy balloting, behind USC quarterback Matt Leinart. Peterson finished his college football career as the Sooners' third all-time leading rusher.

Following his first pro season, in which he set an NFL record for most rushing yards in a single game (296), Peterson was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. He was then awarded the MVP award for his performance in the Pro Bowl and became only the fifth player in NFL history to have more than 3,000 yards through his first two seasons. In 2010, he became the fifth fastest player to run for 5,000 yards, doing so in his 51st game. In 2012, Peterson became the sixth fastest player to reach 8,000 rushing yards, ending the season with 2,097 rushing yards, just nine yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson's single season all-time record. Peterson amassed 2,314 all-purpose yards from scrimmage in 2012, tying Marcus Allen for the eighth-highest total ever. For his efforts, he received the NFL MVP Award and the AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award for the 2012 NFL season.