A Look Back at the 6 NFL Teams that Passed on Adrian Peterson

Adrian Peterson, aka "All Day", aka the "Dominator", is without a question the best running back in the NFL. At this rate, he's going to be in the Hall of Fame in the future.

He runs with speed, power, fury, and a little chip on his shoulder for teams passing him in the 2007 draft.

Teams questioned his durability with his aggressive running style.

Let's take a look back at the 2007 draft to see which teams passed on Purple Jesus.

1) Oakland Raiders - JaMarcus Russell

The Oakland Raiders wanted to go big, but instead of going for a big-time player, they just got a big overweight player. JaMarcus Russell is on the verge of being called a bust, if he's not already.

You can blame JaMarcus and you can blame his situation. He went to Oakland, which is called the "Black Hole" but I think it's literally the black hole cause it seems to suck out all the talent out of players.

He held out of training camp, which is always a dumb move, and then even the first couple weeks of the season, which makes him dumber.

Then he had Lane Kiffin, who turned out to be one of the worst Raider head coaches in recent history.

Mix those together and you get a recipe for disaster.

Since he's been there, they have finished 4-12 and 5-11. He's thrown 16 TDs and 14 INTs. Outstanding.

2) Detroit Lions - Calvin Johnson

Calvin Johnson was drafted to a team, Detroit Lions, with a recent history of first-round wide receiver busts (Mike Williams, Charles Rogers).

He could have turned out like them but how can someone with the nickname "Megatron" turn out to be a bad player? You have to be a bad-ass to be called that.

Despite being on a 0-16 team last season, he finished as one of the strongest wide receivers, statistically, for the season, finishing fifth in receiving yards (1,331), seventh in receiving yards per game (83.2), and leading the league in receiving touchdowns (12)

He has potential to be a Hall of Famer. Solid choice. Could the Lions have used Peterson? Sure but you can't say this was a bad selection either.

3) Cleveland Browns - Joe Thomas

The Cleveland Browns were looking at OT Joe Thomas and even Brady Quinn at this spot. They loved both but ended up taking Thomas. I bet they're glad now they didn't take Quinn here. He's looking like he's going to be benched after two bad games.

He started 16 games as a rookie. The Browns went from giving up the third most sacks (54) to the third least (16). An improvement for sure.

He's made the Pro Bowl. A safe pick but offensive lineman are always a safe pick.

They had an aging Jamal Lewis, who I feel like has been in the league for 20 years.

Peterson would have been the face of the Dawg Pound for years to come.

Imagine a city with Adrian Peterson and Lebron James. Sick.

Maybe that's why he posterized Browns defenders for 180 yards and three TDs in week one.

4) Tampa Bay Bucs - Gaines Adams

Gaines Adams has turned out to be an okay defensive end. He's not a game changer.

In two years, he's totaled 12.5 sacks. He has good numbers, but when you're the fourth pick, you should be getting at least 10 sacks a season and having offense game plans directed away from you.

In 2005, they drafted Cadillac Williams No. 5. Though he rushed for 1178 yards that season, he followed the next with 798. I'm sure they thought he'd be okay enough to pass on Peterson. However, in 2007 and 2008, he's played a total of 10 games due to injuries.

Having Adrian Peterson would wear out those cannons in the pirate ship for sure.

5) Arizona Cardinals - Levi Brown

Arizona took Levi Brown, who is still with the team, started all 16 games last season but has yet to make a Pro Bowl.

Can you imagine the Cardinals the last season with Peterson, Warner, Fitzgerald and Boldin on offense? They might have won the Super Bowl last season and lead the league in scoring.

They just signed Edgerrin James for the 2006 season and probably passed up on Peterson because of that. So maybe they went with need. Maybe they didn't think Peterson was the best player on their board at the time either.

I'm sure when they see Petersen highlights on Sundays, there's a hint of regret.

6) Washington Redskins - LaRon Landry

Oh the Redskins. It's fantasy football but with real money for Daniel Snyder.

The Redskins make big off-season signings and get a lot of press, but turn out to be busts. They haven't made the playoffs in seven of the 10 years Snyder has been there.

Jerry Jones had 105,000 fans at their first home game. Redskins had 4,000 empty seats. Gotta make his blood boil.

In 2007, they took LaRon Landry, a safety. They felt he was the best player on the board. The Redskins imagined him and Sean Taylor patrolling the secondary for many years to come. Sadly, Sean Taylor's death changed all that.

They also had Clinton Portis, whom they got in a trade with the Broncos for Champ Bailey, so they assumed they were good at the running back spot.

Maybe having Peterson would have filled those 4,000 seats. Or maybe not, since that organization just seems to make wrong move after wrong move.

7) Minnesota Vikings - Adrian Peterson

The Vikings were probably thinking "Oh well...we might as well take Adrian Peterson here. All the good players have been taken. Anyone disagree?"

In Madden 2009, he has an 97 rating which leads all running backs.

His body doesn't have an ounce of body fat. Supermodels must be jealous.

Even Mel Kiper Jr. had this one right. He said he was a top-three player, if not the best player in the 2007 draft.

He might run for more than 2,000 yards this season, if not, before he is done with football.

In an interview done after the draft he said:

"I'm a player who is coming in with the determination to turn a team around. I want to help my team get to the playoffs, win… and run wild. I want to bring people to the stands. I want people to come to the game to see what I can do next. Things like that can change the whole attitude of an organization. I want to win."

Makes me wanna run through a wall.