Rams' Myles Garrett Approaches a Decision Point; Adrian Peterson Backs Bijan Robinson for MVP
The NFL never really stops. It just hands you fewer things to argue about, and today's were a knee in Los Angeles and an opinion from Adrian Peterson.
Start with the knee. Sean McVay said Myles Garrett's surgery went well and that the Rams defensive end is "making good progress." He also said Los Angeles is unlikely to open Garrett's 21-day practice window next week. ESPN filed that update twice today, near-identical both times, which tells you how much actual movement there was.
The 21-day window is the tell. Once a club opens it, the clock runs and the player either gets activated or sits for the rest of the season. McVay declining to start it means the Rams are thinking in weeks, not days. My read: don't count on Garrett before the calendar turns, and when he does return, expect a limited snap count rather than a full workload. A partial Garrett in November beats a re-injured one in October, and the reason Los Angeles can afford patience is that the drop-off from Garrett to whoever replaces him is the entire reason the club is being this careful. If I'm wrong, it'll be because the knee responded to rehab faster than this kind of surgery usually allows.
Now the opinion. Peterson named Bijan Robinson the best running back in the league right now, praising his vision and his cuts and backing his MVP potential. Peterson knows this argument from the inside. He's the last running back to actually win the award, and he won it by carrying an offense that had almost nothing else.
That's why his praise is credible on the first half and shaky on the second. Calling Robinson the best back alive is specific and defensible, because Peterson is talking about vision and cuts, the things he'd know. Calling him an MVP is a different claim, and Peterson is the best possible witness and the worst possible judge on it. Running backs don't win MVP anymore. The award became quarterback property, and it stayed there. Robinson can be exactly what Peterson says he is and still finish well down the ballot.
What would change my mind: Robinson leading the league in rushing in December with his offense playing for a bye. Then the case turns on value rather than position, and voters have to at least look. What won't change it is a highlight reel. We get one of those every year.
Two items, one theme. The positions that feel most replaceable in the modern game are the ones where a single player can still swing a season. The Rams are treating Garrett like a player with no plan B, because he is one. Peterson is stumping for Robinson because he believes the league forgot what a plan A at running back looks like.
My verdict: Los Angeles is handling Garrett correctly, and the caution will pay off later rather than sooner. Peterson is right about Robinson and wrong about the trophy, and I'll take that bet today.
