Adrian Peterson was born to Nelson Peterson and Bonita Jackson on March 21, 1985 in Palestine, Texas. He comes from an athletic family as his father was a college basketball player at Idaho State University and his mother was a track and field sprinter at the University of Houston. His uncle, Ivory Lee Brown, played one season in the NFL for the Phoenix Cardinals in 1992. Adrian Peterson has dealt with family crisis throughout his life. He was thirteen years old when his father was sentenced to ten years in prison for money laundering in connection with illegal drugs. Nelson Peterson served nearly eight years of his prison sentence and was released in October 2006. Adrian Peterson's brother, Brian Peterson, was killed at the age of nine by a drunk driver while riding a bicycle. His stepbrother, Chris Paris, was shot and killed in Houston, Texas, one day before Adrian's participation in the 2007 NFL Scouting Combine.

He has one daughter, Adeja. He currently resides in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota, with his brother, Derrick Peterson.

Peterson was interested in football as a child as he began playing at the age of seven and participated in Pop Warner Football. He continued his interest in athletics into high school where he competed in track and field, basketball, and football at Palestine High School. He was most notable in football where he played during his junior and senior years and became the top college recruit in the country as a senior. He finished his 2002 campaign as a junior with 2,051 yards on 246 carries, an average of 8.3 yards per carry, and 22 touchdowns. As a senior in 2003, he rushed for 2,960 yards on 252 attempts, an average of 11.7 yards per carry, and 32 touchdowns. Concluding his high school football career at the annual U.S. Army All-American Bowl, he was named the game's Most Valuable Player after leading the West squad with 95 yards on nine carries and scoring two touchdowns and announced at the game he would attend college at Oklahoma. Among his other choices of schools were the University of Southern California, University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, University of California, Los Angeles, University of Arkansas, and University of Miami. Following the season, he was awarded the Hall Trophy as the Ball Park National High School Player of the Year. In addition, he was named the top high school player by College Football News and Rivals.com.

Following Maurice Clarett's unsuccessful attempt to sue the NFL over their age limit in 2004 there was considerable debate over whether any high school football player might be able to make the leap from the preps to the pro game. The player most frequently mentioned was Adrian Peterson.

During his freshman season, Peterson broke many NCAA freshman rushing records, rushing for 1,925 yards and led the nation in carries with 339. He was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, finishing second to USC quarterback Matt Leinart, which was the highest finish ever for a freshman. He was also a finalist for the Doak Walker Award. Among other honors include being the first Oklahoma freshman recognized as a First-Team Associated Press All-American. Peterson contributed to an undefeated season for the Oklahoma Sooners and participated in the 2005 BCS National Championship Game with a berth to the FedEx Orange Bowl.

Peterson's playing time in 2005 was limited by a high ankle sprain. He injured his ankle in the first Big 12 Conference game of the season against Kansas State University. Despite missing time in four games, he rushed for 1,108 yards and fourteen touchdowns on 220 carries, finishing second in Big 12 rushing yardage. His 2005 season was also notable for a career-long eighty-four yard touchdown run against Oklahoma State University. Upon the conclusion of the season, he was named a member of the All-Big 12 Conference team.

Nelson Peterson was released from prison during the 2006 college football season and was able to watch his son as a spectator for the first time on October 14, 2006 when Oklahoma played Iowa State University. Oklahoma defeated Iowa State in that game, but Adrian Peterson broke his collar bone diving into the end zone to end a fifty-three yard touchdown run. During a press conference on October 18, Peterson said he was told by doctors to expect to be out for four to six weeks. At the time of the injury, Peterson needed only 150 yards to gain to pass Billy Sims as the University of Oklahoma's all-time leading rusher. He was unable to return for the rest of the Sooners regular season, but returned for the Sooners' last game against Boise State in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, where he rushed for 77 yards. He refused to discuss his plans beyond the end of this season with the press. He concluded his college football career with 1,012 rushing yards his final season for a total of 4,045 rushing yards. He was seventy-four yards short of passing Billy Sims as Oklahoma's all-time leading rusher.

On January 15, 2007, Peterson declared that he would forgo his senior year of college and enter the 2007 NFL Draft. Concerns about his injuries suffered during college were noted by the media and potential NFL teams. He started twenty-two out of thirty-one games in his college career and missed games due to a dislocated shoulder his first year, a high ankle sprain his sophomore year, and a broken collarbone his final year at Oklahoma. His durability was a consideration by at least two teams in their draft analysis, which impacted selection position. Prior to the 2007 NFL Draft, Peterson was compared by professional football scouts to Eric Dickerson. ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper, Jr. said of Peterson, "You can make the argument, [Peterson] is the best player in this draft, if not, certainly one of the top three."

On April 28, 2007, Peterson was selected by the Minnesota Vikings with the 7th overall pick in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft. Peterson was the first running back selected in that year's draft. At a press conference during the draft, Peterson announced, "My collarbone, I would say it's 90% healed. A lot of teams know that, and I don't see it stopping me from being prepared for the season."

Peterson believes he is a player that a franchise can build around. In an interview with IGN following the NFL Draft, he said, "I'm a player who is coming in with the determination to turn a team around. I want to help my team get to the playoffs, win…and run wild. I want to bring people to the stands. I want people to come to the game to see what I can do next. Things like that can change the whole attitude of an organization. I want to win."

Since being drafted by the Vikings, it had been speculated that Peterson would have to undergo surgery to heal the collarbone injury suffered during college, but it was revealed on May 16, 2007 that he will not have to have surgery.

Nearly three months after being drafted, he was signed by the Vikings on July 29, 2007. His contract is worth US$40.5 million over five years, with $17 million guaranteed.

On August 10, 2007, Peterson made his Minnesota Vikings debut in a preseason game against the St. Louis Rams. Peterson ran for 33 yards on 11 carries with one catch for 2 yards. On September 9, 2007, Peterson ran for 103 yards on nineteen carries in his first NFL regular season game against the Atlanta Falcons. In addition to his rushing yardage, he scored his first professional football touchdown on a sixty yard pass reception. Over his first three regular season games, his 431 yards (271 rushing & 160 receiving) from scrimmage are a team record. For his performance during the three games, Peterson received the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month award for September 2007.

His most notable game as a professional came on October 14, 2007 against the Chicago Bears, highlighted by a three touchdown performance and a franchise record of 224 yards rushing on 20 carries. Peterson established additional team records for a rookie during this game, which included the most 100-yard games rushing and the longest touchdown run from scrimmage. His 607 rushing yards through the first five games of the season is second in NFL history to Eric Dickerson. Following Peterson's record performance, Deion Sanders, now an NFL Network analyst said the following about Peterson: "He has the vision of a Marshall Faulk, the power of a Terrell Davis, and the speed of an Eric Dickerson. Let’s pray he has the endurance of an Emmitt Smith." Through his first five games, he has also been compared to Walter Payton and Bo Jackson.

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