Buccaneers “not expected” to go after Adrian Peterson aggressively

Adrian Peterson will be hitting free agency as the Minnesota Vikings declined to pick up his 2017 option, and the 32-year-old running back was immediately and widely linked to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, mostly because Peterson kept mentioning them the past two years.

Seems those rumors don’t have much to stand on, if we can believe ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler (via Jenna Laine).

Two sources told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler that the Bucs are not expected to aggressively pursue Adrian Peterson at this point. Things could change, but right now, the team has loose plans for Doug Martin.

Jason Licht and Dirk Koetter spoke to the press today, and the general impression was that they’re in wait-and-see but cautiously-optimistic mode on Doug Martin. They both emphasized that they don’t have to make a decision for a while.

That’s not entirely true, though. If they do sign Adrian Peterson, it’s hard to see how there’ll be a lot of room on the roster for Doug Martin. The same is true if they sign another big-name back, or draft one in the first two rounds.

For now, don’t expect that back to be Adrian Peterson. The Bucs probably aren’t willing to add even more uncertainty to their already confusing running back group, and they want to get Jacquizz Rodgers back in the building anyway.