Vikings notes: Adrian Peterson suggested QB options, then Sam Bradford was available

Once Teddy Bridgewater's season ended, Adrian Peterson made his opinion known on which guys he wanted to be his 12th starting quarterback entering his 10th season with the Vikings.

Sam Bradford, the Eagles' incumbent starter, wasn't a name Peterson said he sent in a series of text messages to General Manager Rick Spielman. After all, there was only a week before the regular season and not even Peterson thought Bradford was an option.

"His name never came up," Peterson said of Bhis former Oklahoma teammate. "Because we knew he was down in Philadelphia and didn't see that happening. I tip my hat to our GM Rick Spielman for doing a great job to bring a guy in who can contribute."

When Peterson heard the news Saturday morning, he was on the field of NRG Stadium where his Sooners were set to open the college football season against host Houston. It's also the site of February's Super Bowl 51, a goal Peterson said he has not abandoned despite another turn of the quarterback carousel.

So it's understandable why Peterson wanted to help find his next passer, one who could help give him an elusive second playoff victory and potentially more.

"Initially when it happened, I sent a little text out to Rick," Peterson said. "I'm trying to be in the mix and give my opinion on guys I think we should bring in. He told me 'Hey, we're going to do what's best for the team, so that's the last thing you have to worry about.' I was like all right; I know you guys are going to do that based off what you've done here past couple years in drafting guys and bringing guys in as well.

"I left it at that and he proved to be telling the truth."

"Got a call from the doctor [Thursday] and everything's good," Zimmer said.

On Aug. 30, Bridgewater suffered a dislocated knee, torn anterior cruciate ligament and other structural issues. It's still not clear what other damage was done to Bridgewater's knee, though Zimmer said his understanding is the surgery was clean and fixed what was needed.

"He says it's a good repair," Zimmer said. "I don't remember the exact words."

Zimmer declined to offer a timetable for Bridgewater's recovery, which could threaten his readiness for the start of the 2017 season. One teammate already shattered expectations when Peterson returned from a torn ACL and medial collateral ligament in only nine months to be ready for the 2012 season.

"Continue to push yourself and believe in yourself," Peterson said. "You're going to have down days. There's times you don't want to do anything, but you have to get up and do something. Just encourage him not to lose faith."

Robison, 33, is the only new player-voted team captain, taking the place of the injured Bridge­water and joining Peterson, linebacker Chad Greenway and defensive end Everson Griffen.

"I'm ecstatic about it," Robison said. "Anytime you get the respect of your peers like that, it's very, very humbling."

Running back Jerick McKinnon had an apparent setback with an injured foot, one that caused him to watch Thursday's practice from the sideline.

McKinnon, the third-year running back, was limited in practice the day before. Tight end MyCole Pruitt (knee) and center Nick Easton (ankle) also did not practice Thursday.

Still limited were cornerback Xavier Rhodes (hamstring), receiver Charles Johnson (quad) and tight end Rhett Ellison (knee).