EDEN PRAIRIE, Minnesota (USA TODAY) — The Minnesota Vikings are standing behind Adrian Peterson.
The team announced Monday that its star halfback will fully participate in meetings and practice this week and is expected to play Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.
The Vikings had deactivated Peterson, 29, for their game against the New England Patriots yesterday, one day after the 2012 NFL MVP answered a warrant in Texas for his arrest on a charge of causing injury to his son by disciplining him with a tree branch.
"Today's decision was made after significant thought, discussion and consideration," owners Zygi Wilf and Mrak Wilf said in a joint statement issued by the team.
"As evidenced by our decision to deactivate Adrian from yesterday's game, this is clearly a very important issue. On Friday, we felt it was in the best interests of the organization to step back, evaluate the situation, and not rush to judgment given the seriousness of this matter. At that time, we made the decision that we felt was best for the Vikings and all parties involved.
"To be clear, we take very seriously any matter that involves the welfare of a child. At this time, however, we believe this is a matter of due process and we should allow the legal system to proceed so we can come to the most effective conclusions and then determine the appropriate course of action. This is a difficult path to navigate, and our focus is on doing the right thing. Currently we believe we are at a juncture where the most appropriate next step is to allow the judicial process to move forward.
"We will continue to monitor the situation closely and support Adrian's fulfillment of his legal responsibilities throughout this process."
Peterson sent out this tweet Monday to his followers addressing the incident:
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