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Vikings running back Adrian Peterson said in November that after a year spent watching following charges of abusing his young son, he might need a “fresh start.”

It sounds as if the Vikings might at least consider allowing that to happen.

Appearing on today’s Pro Football Talk Live with our own Mike Florio, Vikings coach Mike Zimmer alluded to that possibility.

“I would respect Adrian’s decision,” Zimmer said. “I’ll always be honest with him and up front but I’m gonna try to explain to him the reasons why I would like to him to be here.

“But it has to be a two way street and he has to get his life taken care of — but we’ll sit down and talk, but I’m a pretty good recruiter, too.”

It’s normal for a coach on a team that made strides last season to want a player of Peterson’s caliber. But the fact that Zimmer suggested that letting him leave is an option also shows how difficult it is to make such decisions in a football vacuum.