Adrian Peterson's wife opens up about husband's return to Vikings

Redeemed Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was back in his Texas hometown over the weekend, and his wife had a lot to say about her husband's legal troubles and her feelings about him ultimately deciding to return to Minnesota.

Saturday was the ninth annual "Adrian Peterson Day" in Palestine, Texas. The star running back spent much of the day talking football with youngsters and hearing many a supportive comment from the locals. It's been a rough year for Peterson, who was sidelined by the NFL for nearly all of last season in connection with his abusive punishment of one of his children, who was 4 at the time.

Accompanying Peterson among the Palestine faithful was his wife, Ashley, who is expecting the couple's second child in the fall. Adrian Peterson Jr., now 3, tagged along as well.

ESPN reports that Ashley Peterson addressed the uncertainty of whether her husband would ever play again for the Vikings and acknowledged that him moving to a team closer to her roots in Oklahoma would have been nice.

"I am happy that he'll be going back [to the Vikings]," she told ESPN as Adrian Jr. sat on her lap. "They have supported us. I just would personally, for me, I would've preferred to be closer to home. That's just a personal preference for me.

"The Vikings have been supportive of him and the fans have been pretty supportive, so we're happy to be going back."

Asked by the sports network whether part of her desire to leave Minnesota was about how her husband's situation was handled by the Vikings' front office, Ashley Peterson said, "Well, the thing is, kind of, but you never know how that would've played out with anyone else. Just kind of have to go with the flow on that. I personally would've preferred to be closer to my family. I'm having a baby and all that."

Ashley Peterson said she's five months' pregnant with what she said will be Peterson's sixth child.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482