This offseason has been a rough one for Vikings veterans. Lifetime Vikings Adam Thielen and Eric Kendricks will play for new teams for the first time in their careers, and it looks like another one in Dalvin Cook could suffer the same fate. The team has been looking to save cap space and usher in new faces. With rumors swirling left and right, the only reason Cook is still on the roster might be that the front office has not been able to find the right compensation for him in a trade. While it seems as though O’Connell wants to keep Cook on the roster, he recently said, “We’ll see where things go here the rest of the offseason,” implying he is preparing for Cook’s possible departure. Let’s take a look at the Vikings’ options.
Cook Stays
After all, he has been an integral part of the team’s offense and has provided stability in the position for the first time since Adrian Peterson. No Viking fan wants to go back to the days when the running back room was headlined by Latavius Murray, Jerrick McKinnon, or Matt Asiata. If Cook were to stay, the team would know what it was getting. We know that Cook can thrive in this offense. He can provide the kind of juice that can completely change a game like he did against the Bills and the Colts this past season. Cook is a threat that the defense has to pay a lot of attention to which opens up the opportunity for play-action passes. Play action used to be the Vikings and Kirk Cousins’ bread and butter, even though it has slowed down under O’Connell.
Cook was named to the Pro Bowl for the fourth time in a row this year and provides top-10 value to the running back position. It makes sense to keep Cook for as long as the team keeps Cousins since the two have held down their positions on the team for so long and have become essential leaders on and off the field. This could mean keeping Cook in the fold for one more year and overhauling both positions for the 2024 season.
Cook Leaves
Cook’s productivity has started to wane. He posted his worst yards per carry of his career this season at 4.5. While he is still an above-average talent at his position, running back is a low-value position. Most Super Bowl winners have a capable back and one that is a threat in the passing game, the key is to not allocate a large amount of the salary cap to a position with relatively low positional value. Trading Cook would save the team $7.9 million before June 1st or $11 million after June 1st. Saving that kind of money could be huge for the team to upgrade other positions of need. Releasing Cook saves a bit less but the team should try to recuperate some of his value and gain draft capital.
There has always been the question of Dalvin Cook’s injury history as well. The 2022 season marked the first time Cook had played more than 15 games in a season in his career. This offseason Cook underwent surgery on his shoulder for a lingering injury from “the past few seasons” according to the team. It begs the question of how much longer he will be able to produce at a high level.
If Cook finds himself on another team this upcoming season, the Vikings have plenty of backups in place. Alexander Mattison has always done a great job stepping in when Cook has been injured over the past few seasons and he recently inked a 2-year, $7 million deal with the team. The team and fans alike would be content with having Mattison take over the starting spot if Cook were to leave. Mattison can produce, he has just never been allowed to do so on a larger scale. Additionally, running backs Ty Chandler and rookie DeWayne McBride could complement Mattison well and form a great committee approach to the position.
Many people thought Cook would be gone before free agency started. Then the rumors about him leaving seemed to peak during the draft and yet no move was made. Still, he is on the roster but there seems to be a general feeling that he will not be with the Vikings for the 2023 season. The team is prepared for life without him, however, a changing of the guard with him and Cousins in 2024 may be more appropriate. Either way, The Chef will always have a special place in the heart of Vikings fans.
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