Adrian Peterson stunned the football world when he miraculously recovered from knee surgery in such a short amount of time two seasons ago. Now it seems the Minnesota Vikings running back will have to do it again, this time to repair an injured groin.
According to NFL.com , “Peterson will undergo groin surgery on Thursday in Philadelphia,” based on a report from NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport. Peterson had been battling the injury throughout the end of the regular season, and it showed after several ineffective outings in the last quarter of the regular season.
Two years ago, the Vikings star stunned the sports world with his speedy recover from not one, but two tears in his knee. He suffered the gruesome injury in a game against the Washington Redskins on December 24, 2011. Not only was he able to recover from an injury that can normally take 9-12 months to heal, but also won league the NFL MVP Award, the AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award, and was nominated to the Pro Bowl as well.
In this age of PED use among star athletes, his rapid recovery from knee surgery left many to speculate whether Peterson had also partaken in its use, specifically HGH, or Human Growth Hormone, which has been known to accelerate the healing process in athletes.
But in an interview with USA Today at the start of training camp, Adrian steadfastly denied its use in helping him recover. He even took it a step further and called it a “compliment” that many believe it helped him recover so quickly from injury:
“Seriously. Especially with the amount of work I put in,” Peterson said. “Guys say that to me, or if I hear someone saying that — it makes me feel good.”
While the groin injury slowed Peterson down late in the season, it certainly did not stop him from being voted to yet another Pro Bowl. However, due to the surgery Peterson will not be able to participate. Considering the format has been changed to mirror the wildly popular “Fantasy Football” style of competition, with Hall of Famers Deion Sanders and Jerry Rice selected as captains for their respective teams, this comes as a loss to the league that would have liked to have seen Peterson participate. Drew Brees and Jamal Charles were the number one picks chosen for each side.
According to NFL.com , “Dr. William Meyers, who performed Peterson’s sports hernia operation last year, will handle this surgery.”