Lamar Miller Says Adrian Peterson's Experience Would Help Texans

On Thursday, running back Lamar Miller supported the idea of the Houston Texans signing veteran Adrian Peterson.

During an interview with NFL Network (h/t Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk), Miller said the following:

"I used to look up to Adrian Peterson growing up. He runs the ball hard. He's a great running back. He's been a great running back in this league for years. It would be good to have him join us, just his leadership, seeing the things he's done in previous years, that I feel like I could probably learn from him. It would help us out as a team."

Peterson is a free agent after splitting last season between the New Orleans Saints and Arizona Cardinals.

During a recent appearance on ESPN's NFL Live, Houston was among the possible landing spots Peterson—a Texas native—mentioned.

After spending the first 10 seasons of his career with the Minnesota Vikings, Peterson signed with the Saints last offseason. He was traded to the Cardinals after just four games.

In 10 games overall, Peterson rushed for 529 yards (on 3.4 yards per carry) and two touchdowns while catching 11 passes for 70 yards.

The 33-year-old looked slow and plodding at times last season, but he also showed flashes of brilliance, such as his 134-yard, two-touchdown rushing performance against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in October and a 159-yard showing against the San Francisco 49ers in November.

With seven Pro Bowls, four All-Pro First Team nods and one NFL MVP award to his credit, Peterson is a surefire Hall of Famer regardless of whether he plays this season. While he is no longer an every-down back, he did show in 2017 that he can still thrive at times in a more limited role.

Houston finished in the middle of the pack in both rushing yards and yards per carry last season, and Miller had a down year, as he rushed for 888 yards and averaged just 3.7 yards per tote.

With backup D'Onta Foreman yet to return from a torn Achilles suffered last season, there could be value for Houston in signing Peterson to compete with the likes of Miller, Tyler Ervin and Alfred Blue before making a decision when Foreman comes back.