There was a time when Adrian Peterson’s name carried weight. The former running back was a star right from the beginning of his career and spent 10 years with the Minnesota Vikings.
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But Peterson is trying hard to win that respect back. TMZ has learnt that Peterson has served more than 30 hours of community service, as ordered in the sentence he received for DWI and unlawful carrying of a weapon charges from last year. Peterson had negotiated a plea deal with prosecutors earlier this year and was to complete 32 hours of community service, per TMZ.
“TMZ obtained court docs showing Adrian racked up the hours from July 13 to July 30 by working 4-hour shifts at Meals on Wheels, a local food drive, helping supervise youth bags for the homeless, working a July 4th event for senior citizens, and assisting with a YMCA program,” the report read.
Peterson was arrested in April after being pulled over by cops when he was caught driving 83 mph in a 55 mph area. The Minnesota state trooper who pulled him over conducted a breathalyzer test, in which Peterson’s blood alcohol content was registered at 0.14. He was then charged with fourth-degree driving while intoxicated.
He pled guilty to the incident this year in March and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, of which 85 days were stayed for a year. He was credited for the single day he spent in jail. And in lieu of spending time in jail, he was ordered to complete community service hours.
Unfortunately, this solves only one of his DWI arrests. Later in 2025, Anderson was arrested yet another time in Texas for driving while intoxicated and for unlawfully carrying a weapon.
In his 10 years with the team, Peterson rushed for more than 1,000 yards seven times; he also ran for 2,097 yards in 2012. He won the NFL MVP and Offensive Player of the Year Awards that year, and featured in seven Pro Bowls during his time with the Vikings. Peterson rushed for 11,747 yards while he was with Minnesota.
Adrian Peterson is sixth on the all-time rushing yards leaderboard, which further shows how dominant he truly was on the field. One of his greatest plays is perhaps that 64-yard touchdown he registered against the Cleveland Browns in 2009, in the process of which he’d also shoved aside an opponent defender to reach the end zone.
The legal controversies have made things harder for Peterson, but Minnesota has not forgotten about him.
The Vikings still respect Adrian Peterson
Vikings Owner Mark Wilf said in 2017 that Peterson is “one of the greatest Vikings of all time” and that he’ll always be part of the family. Nine years later, Wilf honored that commitment by enshrining him in the Vikings Ring of Honor.
“From the moment we selected Adrian in the 2007 NFL Draft, he proved to be a transformational player for the Minnesota Vikings,” Vikings Owner/President Mark Wilf said. “It will be a privilege to welcome Adrian into the Vikings Ring of Honor this year, and we know it’s a matter of time before we are also celebrating his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.”
The Vikings pulled quite the stunt before informing Peterson of the honor. On May 7, he was invited by the team to record some content. His interview was interrupted by fellow Vikings legend John Randle, who was wearing his Ring of Honor jacket.
The two then walked over to reveal a locker that had Peterson’s jersey and another Ring of Honor jacket. Peterson was overcome with emotion, and he later sat down for his actual interview.
“I feel blessed [that my name will] go up there with the greatest of greats to play in this organization. It’s just a blessing — a constant reminder for me of how God is and how hard work pays off,” he said. “Not only just hard work, but how you treat people, how you deal with people, the relationships that you build. That all comes into play when you’re honored to this magnitude. It feels amazing.”
A Pro Football Hall of Fame induction isn’t too unfathomable for Peterson. He will be eligible for the Class of 2027 and has the grounds to make it into Canton someday in the future. But for now, Peterson is set to watch his name be enshrined with the franchise greats on November 9, when the Vikings play the Buffalo Bills.