Dalvin Cook Can Give the Vikings Something Adrian Peterson No Longer Could
New Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook may never fill the departed Adrian Peterson's enormous shoes, but that's not what this is about. Folks will inevitably compare Cook—drafted Friday at 41st overall by the Vikings just days after the legendary Peterson signed with the New Orleans Saints—with his predecessor, but this league is about right now.
And right now, the 21-year-old Cook offers the Vikings something the 32-year-old Peterson no longer could: an upward trajectory at a position that has the shortest shelf life in American professional sports.
Releasing Peterson might have been a financial decision more than anything else, but it was time for a change anyway. He missed most of 2016 because of a knee injury, and he averaged a mere 2.9 yards per attempt in his last nine games as a Viking (including 2015 postseason). He failed to reach the 70-yard mark on the ground in eight of those nine games and didn't score a touchdown in his last four outings.
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| Carries | 150 |
| Yards | 438 |
| Yards/attempt | 2.9 |
| Touchdowns | 3 |
| 100-yard games | 1 |
A lot of Vikings fans probably had trouble with Peterson's departure because of what he accomplished during his 10 years there. And even a beyond-his-prime Peterson had to seem like a better option than the early-offseason alternatives for a Vikings running game that averaged a league-low 3.2 yards per carry and 75.3 rushing yards per game without their future Hall of Fame back in 2016.
But Cook changes all of that. He was a steal in the second round, as many viewed him as the best back in a back-rich draft. The man rushed for 3,456 yards, averaged 6.7 yards per carry and scored 40 touchdowns from scrimmage during his two full seasons as a starter at Florida State.
| 2014 | 170 | 1,008 | 5.9 | 1,211 | 8 |
| 2015 | 229 | 1,691 | 7.4 | 1,935 | 20 |
| 2016 | 288 | 1,765 | 6.1 | 2,253 | 20 |
| Career | 687 | 4,464 | 6.5 | 5,399 | 48 |
He's an explosive home run hitter with an ideal combination of vision, patience and speed, and he has the resume to back it up. He isn't powerful. But he doesn't shy away from contact, and he makes up for that with his elusiveness. He also isn't a good blocker and has had issues with ball security, but that's not usually enough to disqualify a game-changing back from the first round (Peterson himself was prone to fumbles early in his career).
So why'd Cook drop into the second round? Probably due to the draft's most infamous alliterative phrase: character concerns. He found plenty of trouble growing up, highlighted in this profile by The MMQB's Robert Klemko. He was arrested twice as a teenager (charges were dropped both times) and had several brushes with authority while at FSU.
And NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Friday that the slide might have had to do with Cook's hangers-on.
"So the reason as far as I'm told [his slide] relates to some of the people that he hangs out with off the field," Rapoport wrote. "It's more upbringing than character if that makes any sense. Because at this point, from what I'm told, the on-field character is very good, considered to be at Florida State an excellent teammate, a very hard worker. But some of it is the situations he puts himself in off the field. He has promised teams that the people around him are not coming with him to the NFL."
He also disappointed at the scouting combine in Indianapolis but made up for that with a pro day one scout told Bleacher Report's Matt Miller was "f--king special." Soon after that performance, an NFL running backs coach reportedly told NFL.com's Lance Zierlein that Cook "is the no-doubt best RB in this draft."
But a stigma had already developed, and it might have cost Cook a spot in the first round, especially because he plays a non-premium position and because backs Leonard Fournette and Christian McCaffrey—who ended up going No. 4 and No. 8 overall, respectively—were just as highly rated.
The Vikings were in the right place at the right time when Cook dropped into the 40s. The investment isn't as large that far down the draft board and certainly worthwhile for a Minnesota team desperate for help in the backfield. The Vikings held the 48th pick but didn't want to risk waiting. They sent a bonus fourth-round pick (acquired last year from the Miami Dolphins) to the Cincinnati Bengals in order to move up seven spots to land the 5'10", 210-pound ball of energy.
They could grow to regret doing so, but mistakes aren't as large in Round 2. And the good news is there won't be as much pressure on Cook as you'd expect. Yeah, he's the first player drafted by the Vikings after saying goodbye to Peterson, and he'll be the top dog at a position that needs immediate improvement. But that running game can't really get any worse after Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata spent the majority of the 2016 campaign seemingly running in the wrong direction.
| Yards per carry | 3.2 | 32nd |
| Yards per game | 75.3 | 32nd |
| DVOA | -23.5% | 31st |
He'll also be supported by veteran Latavius Murray, who is a year removed from a 1,000-yard season and is coming off a 12-touchdown campaign with the Oakland Raiders. The Vikes signed Murray to a three-year, $15 million contract last month. He has more size (6'3", 230 lbs) and better blocking skills, so you can be sure Minnesota will give him plenty of reps.
That Cook-led platoon gives the Vikings renewed hope at a position that had gone stale. The Vikings couldn't consistently contend when Peterson was in his prime there, and he's declining. Paying him a premium no longer made sense. It was safer and cheaper to sign Murray and draft Cook in the second round, and the rookie gives them a little bit more hope right now and in the future.
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