'Four more years! Four more years!'
That's the chant going through Adrian Peterson's head when he considers how much longer he plans to keep his NFL career chugging along.
The man known as All Day told TMZ Sports he hopes to play at least four more seasons.
"Man, why not four more years?" Peterson recently said. "Why not?"
The Washington Redskins running back turned 35 years old in March but wants to run until the wheels fall off.
"I don't want to ever be in a position where I look back and say, 'Man, I should have played two more years,'" Peterson said. "'I should have played another year.' I want to enjoy it. I'm still chasing a championship. You know, I still can play the game at a high level. For those reasons, and having that love and passion for the game, I'm going to continue to keep the ball rolling."
Peterson's stated desire to play four seasons could mean he's willing to let the NFL retire him -- as so many before have done -- rather than walk away on his own. He'll return to Washington in 2020, but beyond that, would another club give a then-36-year-old running back another shot?
Peterson's desire to continue playing could be in part to chase Emmitt Smith's all-time rushing record. Peterson sits with 14,216 career rushing yards (fifth all-time), 4,139 behind Smith for the all-time record. Peterson would need to average 1,035 yards per year to pass Smith in four seasons.
AD rushed for 1,042 yards in 2018 with Washington and earned 898 last year. He still has moments of brilliance, including generating more 20-yard rushes last year (six) than big names like Todd Gurley, Aaron Jones and Alvin Kamara (five) and Ezekiel Elliott (four).
How much Peterson has left in the tank is the big question for a player who has defied normal expectations for an RB his entire career.
Washington owns a crowded backfield that includes AD, Derrius Guice, rookie Antonio Gibson, Bryce Love, Peyton Barber, Josh Ferguson, and J.D. McKissick. Whether Peterson is able to earn the bulk of the snaps to help him chase Smith's record in 2020 remains to be seen.
