Dalvin Cook on Return from Knee Surgery: 'It Feels Good. I'm Ready to Go'

Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook has ditched the knee brace and said he's "ready to go" in his recovery from a torn ACL.

"I feel comfortable, I feel good. It was just a matter of time before it happened. It feels good. I'm ready to go," Cook told Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune.

Cook, 22, suffered a season-ending knee injury just four games into his rookie year. He was on pace for a breakout campaign, rushing for 354 yards and two touchdowns.

"I don't ever like to say ahead of schedule, because a lot of people put that word out there—ahead of schedule, ahead of schedule—but I truly feel like I'm ahead of schedule. I feel comfortable with where I am. Like I just feel like I took a step forward, you know?" Cook said.

Cook is slated to be a participant in full-contact practice when those begin for the Vikings on Monday. There have been no limits on his action, though it's unclear if he will play in Minnesota's preseason opener against the Denver Broncos on Aug. 11.

"Yeah, I'm ready to go. I'm ready to get some action. I don't know how much they're going to let me get. Whatever plan they got for me, just execute," Cook said of the padded practice.

Cook could start the season sharing reps with Latavius Murray, who rushed for 842 yards and eight touchdowns last season after the Florida State product's knee injury. Murray and Jerick McKinnon, who has since signed with the San Francisco 49ers, shared the workload.

Cook will almost certainly be available for the regular-season opener against the 49ers on Sept. 9.