LAST WORD (WE SWEAR) ON PETERSON’S HELMET REMOVAL

We’ve got one more thing to say about the incident near the end of the Packers-Vikings game, during which Minnesota running back Adrian Peterson removed his helmet moments after scoring what ended up being the decisive touchdown. Many commenters over the past two days have argued that Peterson took the helmet off because he was hurt, or that the helmet was knocked off by a teammate, or that the thing on Peterson’s head really wasn’t a giant condom. (That last contention is correct. We think.) On Wednesday, Peterson explained his actions in a conference call with the Tampa media. “I was just really caught up in the moment,” he said, per the St. Paul Pioneer Press. “For me, it was more emotional because I had just fumbled to put us in a bad situation that could’ve cost us the game, and then in the last drive when we needed it, turned it around and got into the end zone. . . . I was just caught up in the moment. I wasn’t trying to celebrate.” That last part is hair-splitting. Whether it’s because Peterson was celebrating or was caught up in the moment or was hoping to give some air time to his newest corporate sponsor, Trojan, if a player takes his helmet off in the end zone after a touchdown, the player has committed unsportsmanlike conduct. Next step? Peterson likely will be making a contribution to the Human Fund.