Brees fired up about adding Peterson to Saints' offense: 'He is a stud'

After so many years watching Adrian Peterson torch NFL defenses, Drew Brees seems thrilled to have the future Hall of Famer at his side.

The New Orleans Saints quarterback expressed his excitement for the addition of Peterson while speaking with reporters Thursday, making specific mention of the veteran running back's physicality.

"He is a stud," Brees said, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. "He looks the part. It has been impressive. Obviously, you admired the guy from afar. I have played in a few Pro Bowls with him, so I do have a little bit of that experience. There is something about handing the ball off to that guy and watching him run through the hole and take on anybody who tries to tackle him. Obviously, we are not in pads right now, but you are just imagining what it is going to be like. So, I am excited for that time to come."

The concern with Peterson, and the primary reason he found such a weak market in free agency, is the fact that he's now 32 years old and coming off a 2016 season in which injuries limited him to just three games.

Looking back to the level of play he managed to maintain just one year prior, though, it's easy to see why those within the Saints organization would still be optimistic about what he can bring to the table.

The now-former Minnesota Vikings star racked up a league-high 1,485 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns while starting all 16 games in 2015.

Peterson is now entering new territory, where he'll have to compete for snaps alongside the likes of Mark Ingram and third-round rookie Alvin Kamara, but anything close to that kind of production would give him every opportunity for a featured role.

New Orleans improving upon its 16th-ranked standing in the run game could provide the ideal complement for a passing attack that, led by Brees, remains one of the NFL's most explosive.