Vikings officials say decision to bar Adrian Peterson was ‘100%’ theirs

The owners of the Minnesota Vikings said Wednesday they changed their minds about allowing embattled running back Adrian Peterson to play with the team based on their own feelings on the right way to handle the situation, not any kind of pressure from the NFL or corporate sponsors.

Early Wednesday, Vikings co-owners Zygi and Mark Wilf announced that they were placing Peterson on the exempt/commissioner’s permission list, which prevents him from taking part in any team activities, with pay, for an indefinite period.

General Manager Rick Spielman, one of the team executives who joined the owners at a news conference later in the morning, said Peterson would remain on the list and away from the team until his legal matters are resolved.

Peterson, the 2012 league MVP, is due in court Oct. 8 on a felony charge of injury to a child. He was indicted last Friday and was deactivated by the Vikings for the team’s game against the New England Patriots two days later.

He was reinstated by the Vikings on Monday, a decision that was widely criticized and eventually reversed by the owners around 2 a.m. CDT Wednesday.

“We made a mistake and we needed to get this right,” Zygi Wilf said at the news conference. “We embrace our role in the community, and the responsibilities that go with it. It is important to always listen to our fans, the community and our sponsors. Our goal is to always make the decision we feel is right for the Minnesota Vikings, and to be clear, we have a strong stance regarding the protection and welfare of children, and we want to be sure we get this right.”

On Monday night, the Radisson hotel chain announced that it was suspending its sponsorship of the team. Peterson has also lost some sponsors, and his deal with Nike has been suspended for now.

Those events have unfolded as the NFL also is dealing with the domestic-abuse issues of former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice.

Still, when asked in separate questions if the pullout of corporate partners or pressure from the league had anything to do with the team’s latest decision, Mark Wilf said each time, “Absolutely not.”

“This is our decision 100%,” he said. “And like I’ve said all along, we’re aiming to get it right and we feel we’ve got it right here.”

Twitter: @chewkiii