Adrian Peterson is back in the NFL as of Friday. Naturally, the Cowboys want Adrian Peterson a writer for the Cowboys' official website wants Adrian Peterson.
Peterson, who's reinstatement into the league also means he's under contract for three more years in Minnesota, is interested in playing for Dallas. We know that because he told the Vikings, by whom Peterson feels slighted after the team separated itself from the running back amid child abuse allegations last year.
MORE: Why Vikings are still best fit for Peterson | Ball in Minnesota's court
But an article exclaiming Peterson's potential value in Dallas appeared on the Cowboys' official website Thursday. The writer, Rob Phillips, presents a three-point disclaimer that his words essentially amount to "transcribed bar talk," clarifying that Peterson is still a Viking and the Cowboys have not expressed a desire to acquire him.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones already flirted with the NFL's tampering limits when he spoke with the Vikings running back over the phone in August. Isn't this tampering, too?
Not exactly, according to Pro Football Talk, which pointed to the league's anti-tampering policy:
"Articles that appear on the website of a club that identify prospective free agents that the team might be interested in, or that rate prospective free agents, shall not be considered violations of the Anti-Tampering Policy unless they include a direct quote or expression of interest by an employee of the club (other than the author of the article) about a specific player."
But Peterson, due $13 million in salary next season, is not and will not be a free agent. The NFL was asked for clarification on its policy, according to PFT.
To Phillips' (and the Cowboys') defense, he did not quote a Dallas team rep and did not suggest the team is in pursuit of Peterson. Like Phillips wrote, his article amounts to speculative bar talk.
He just offers a reasonable opinion why Dallas should trade for the best running back in the league ... on the Cowboys' official site.