NORMAN, Okla. -- All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson would welcome Brett Favre to Minnesota with open arms if the quarterback decides to come out of retirement for the second consecutive year, this time to sign with the Vikings.
"You're talking about a Hall of Fame quarterback, a guy that I grew up watching. I love just the passion he played with," Peterson said Friday during a break at his youth camp in Oklahoma. "If he is a part of our team when the season comes around, when training camp comes around, we're going to welcome him with open arms and see where the chips fall."
Peterson said he'll tell coach Brad Childress and top Vikings officials what he thinks, but he isn't about to tangle himself up in the decision to pursue Favre or stick with either Sage Rosenfels or Tarvaris Jackson at quarterback.
"I know our coach is going to do his job, and at the end of the day, his job is having the best team possible to win games," Peterson said. "That's his job, so I'm going to let him handle his job and I'm going to do my job."
At least for a few days, Peterson was a featured quarterback. He spent time dropping back for passes and avoiding blitzers during his football camp for about 400 kids on his former college campus at Oklahoma.
Peterson reminisced about all he had accomplished -- and hadn't quite accomplished -- during his three years with the Sooners. It made him think of a visit to Reggie Bush's house in Los Angeles, where a certain piece of memorabilia caught his eye.
"I found myself walking up the steps, and I looked down right at this big Heisman Trophy just sitting in this real nice case," Peterson said. "I was like, 'Awww!' I wanted to ask him where Matt Leinart was so I could go over there and take mine. But it's all good. It is what it is."
Peterson moved on to a successful career in the NFL, breaking the league record for most rushing yards in a single game and helping the Vikings make the playoffs last season.
Leinart won the Heisman Trophy in 2004, when Peterson ran for an NCAA freshman-record 1,925 yards and became the first frosh to place second in the Heisman voting. Leinart and Bush, who won the trophy in 2005, went on to lead USC to a 55-19 thumping of Peterson, 2003 Heisman winner Jason White and Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl and win the BCS championship.
Nearly five years later, Peterson still covets the two trophies he was denied by the Trojans.
"When I look back, I had an outstanding career," Peterson said. "There were some things that -- a national championship, I didn't accomplish that. I fell short. I had the opportunity my freshman year, and I don't even want to talk about that.
"I definitely wanted to win the Heisman Trophy, and that didn't work out. There was definitely a lot that I wanted to accomplish, but unfortunately I didn't do it."
This weekend, Peterson can try to forget about that with the help of kids ages 7 to 14. He paused and flexed his right arm after overthrowing a receiver in the end zone on one play this week, then made up for it by finding another kid open in the back corner for a touchdown.
When he moved to another field, Peterson got a taste of what it's really like to be a quarterback when his waist-high defenders came on the attack.
On one play, Peterson picked up a blitzer with his left arm while tossing an on-target pass with his right. He could only shake his head after throwing an interception, then threw another moments later.
During a question-and-answer session with the kids, one of the college coaches working at the camp suggested that Peterson had always harbored a secret desire to be a quarterback. But when he asked a youngster what position Peterson would play on his team, he responded, "Running back."
With or without Favre, Peterson suggested that the camp could be a preview of things to come for the Vikings.
"We picked up (Florida speedster) Percy Harvin, so we're going to be running a lot of different scat formations ... maybe Wildcat," Peterson said. "We might just throw that in there some. So, you guys just might see me on Sundays throwing the ball, too."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
