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Peterson also proudly pointed out Friday the first time he went without the device was during the Pro Bowl in February — when he rushed for two touchdowns and was honored as the game’s most valuable player.
After such a sensational rookie season, Peterson fielded the predictable first-day questions about how many yards he’s expecting for himself in his second year.
“I don’t know. Whatever it takes to help my team win a division title and get to that Super Bowl,” he said. “Any way I can contribute, even if I have 200 yards at the end of the season. As long as we get to that promised land, I’ll be satisfied.”
FORGET FAVRE? The Vikings appeared to move closer Friday to ridding themselves of a twice-annual challenge: Facing Brett Favre.
The latest report on the story of the summer in the NFL claimed Favre was close to reporting to training camp with the Packers, who are in the process of talking about trades for the star quarterback. The New York Jets were named as a potential landing place.
“As long as he’s out of this conference I’m good with that,” receiver Bobby Wade said. “There’s no doubt about that. You don’t want to play against a guy like that all the time.”
Though Favre announced his retirement in March, two of his former teammates who now play for the Vikings didn’t believe it.
“I know that he’s a great competitor and a great warrior so I was surprised to see him retire,” receiver Robert Fer-guson said. “But I’m not surprised to see him coming out.”
Safety Darren Sharper said as much, but stopped short of endorsing the removal of Favre — whichever team he might play for — from the schedule.
“I still want to play against him, because I want to beat the best,” Sharper said.
QUICK HITS: Defensive tackle Pat Williams, who had elbow surgery in the winter, was limited to individual drills in Friday’s practice. The team will be cautious, Childress said, until Williams has full strength in the joint. Defensive end Ray Edwards was the only player not in pads. He shrugged off the severity of his back injury: “Just working it out so I can get back on the field,” he said. ... Childress canceled the pre-camp conditioning test this year, holding a similar exercise during spring practices instead, because of the widespread participation in offseason strength and speed workouts at Winter Park. Another reason was to save the players’ legs: The demise of the NFL’s European developmental league led to a strict 80-player limit for training camp rosters, without the Europe exemptions used in the past. ... Defensive end Jared Allen returned from a recent cruise with a full, bushy beard. He said he’s not sure yet whether he’ll keep it, shave it, or trim it into something else. “I’ve got a lot of options,” he said. ... A thunderstorm rolled through as the Vikings were scheduled to start their first practice, so they waited inside for about an hour for the sky to lighten and the grass to dry before taking the field.
OVERHEARD: Sharper, on whether he has spoken to Favre recently: “Not for the record,” he said, pausing to smile. “I don’t have his cell phone. It’s Packer-issued. They wouldn’t let me get that number if I tried.”
