Vikings legend egregiously snubbed from new NFL all-century team

ESPN revealed an NFL all-quarter century team on Wednesday from analytics-focused writers Aaron Schatz and Seth Walder. One thing immediately stood out when looking through it: Where on earth is Adrian Peterson?

The team includes three running backs: Priest Holmes, Christian McCaffrey, and Derrick Henry. Listed on the "practice squad," so essentially the honorable mention, is LaDainian Tomlinson. That means they don't consider Peterson to be even a top-four running back of the 21st century.

That is, put bluntly, flat-out wrong. Incorrect. Hogwash. Blasphemy. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, of course. It's also just a list created by two people, with no affiliation to the NFL. Still, this is an awful, egregious snub.

In explaining why they chose Henry over Peterson and Tomlinson for their third spot, the authors cited Henry's career 4.9 yards per carry average (compared to 4.6 for Peterson). But here's the thing: Peterson's YPC average during his Minnesota career, which lasted until he was Henry's current age, was 4.9. That mark dropped due to some less-efficient seasons at the tail end of his career, but why should he be penalized for that?

Advanced stats were also utilized in the process, according to the article:

These decisions were made mostly on statistical output, focusing on peak seasons while still rewarding longevity. We relied heavily on FTN's DYAR metric (defense-adjusted yards above replacement), which calculates a player's value over the course of the season compared to a replacement-level baseline. Other advanced statistics were also taken into account.

Using advanced metrics as a tool can be useful. But they can't be weighed so heavily that you snub Peterson from a team like this because he didn't have enough DYAR. That hurts the validity and value of the entire exercise. Box score stats and actually watching the games has to mean something, too.

The only person with more rushing yards than Peterson's 14,918 since 2000 is Frank Gore, who played for 16 seasons. The only person with more rushing touchdowns than Peterson's 120 is Tomlinson. We're talking about a guy who made the All-Pro team in each of his seven fully-healthy seasons with the Vikings, including four first-team selections. A guy who won the MVP award in 2012 after one of the greatest individual running back seasons in league history. Peterson combined peak and longevity like almost no one else at his position ever has.

I mean, just pull up some AP highlights if you need to. His blend of power, agility, vision, and breakaway speed was truly one of one.