Adrian Peterson Undergoing Counseling, Working to Maintain Joint Custody of Son

Adrian Peterson is reportedly taking more steps to get back in the NFL and to maintain joint custody of his son.

According to Brian Murphy of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, citing juvenile court records, Peterson is in the midst of a four-month stint for "psychological counseling and parenting supervision."

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Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman petitioned Child Protective Services in September to intervene on behalf of the boy, who lives with his mother in the county, after Peterson was indicted on a child abuse charge in Texas.

Peterson is allowed supervised visits with his son. He is barred from using corporal punishment. He also has submitted to parenting evaluations by social workers and a psychologist, court filings show.

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Peterson's plea bargain in November turned his felony child-abuse charge into a misdemeanor for reckless assault, according to Lynn Zinser of The New York Times.

A spokesman at the Attorney's Office, Chuck Laszewski, said that Peterson is so far meeting the conditions from the petition. 

Peterson's attorney, Emily Cooper, is quoted in Murphy's report, saying her client "is doing what he's supposed to do, and we're hopeful once that has been completed, he will be able to go back to playing."

In November, the NFL suspended Peterson without pay for the final six games of the season and wouldn't consider him for reinstatement until April 15. That was after he missed the previous nine games while on the Commissioner's Exempt list until his legal problems were resolved. 

While Peterson is following through on what he needed to do legally, it's unclear what his future in the NFL will be if Commissioner Roger Goodell reinstates him. He will turn 30 on March 21 and is signed with the Vikings through 2017 though the team could look to trade or release the former MVP. 

Recently asked if he would like to return to Minnesota, via Andrew Krammer of 1500ESPN.com, the former All-Pro simply said, "Of course."

Given the way running backs tend not to age gracefully, as well as Peterson's legal problems, his NFL future still has a huge cloud hanging over it. At least he seems to be getting things right in his personal life to possibly warrant another chance at playing the game he loves.