Arizona Cardinals’ Larry Fitzgerald weighs in on Adrian Peterson situation

Do the Arizona Cardinals want running back Adrian Peterson?

Probably.

Then again, what team wouldn’t want one of the best running backs to ever play the game?

That’s essentially the way Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald sees it.

“Adrian Peterson is arguably the best back in the NFL,” the receiver told NFL.com’s Around The NFL Wednesday. “You know, he’s been unbelievable. If he were to leave Minnesota, which I think is maybe a bit unlikely, he would be a huge, huge playmaker for whatever team he went to.”

The Peterson saga is pretty well known. One of the game’s premier players, he was suspended for all but one game last season after he was found to have hit one of his children with a switch.

He has since been reinstated, but in the meantime has reportedly grown disenfranchised with the Vikings organization and has requested to be traded.

It is with that in mind that the Cardinals have surfaced as a potential suitor, if not a likely destination.

But the Vikings’ asking price is reportedly very high, and when combined with the running back’s hefty contract, any team making a deal for the 30-year-old is going to have to make a considerable commitment. But if a team such as the Cardinals views the six-time Pro Bowler as the missing piece to a championship puzzle then, well, perhaps it would be worth it.

“You have to look at what he’s able to do, you know, in terms of controlling the line of scrimmage and breaking short gains and making long gains and finishing in the end zone. I mean, he’s the complete package,” Fitzgerald added. “What he’s worth, I’m not a GM, I have no idea on compensation or players. What I do know, he’s a dynamic talent and he will be an asset to anybody.”

Last season, the Cardinals finished 11-5 despite having the second-worst rushing offense in the NFL. Their leading runner was Andre Ellington, who carried the ball 201 times for 660 yards and three touchdowns during an injury-shortened campaign.