Dalvin Cook Holding Out For New Contract

The Fantasy Football gods hate me. Dalvin Cook is officially holding out and will not play unless he gets a new contract. Cook is in the final year of his rookie deal and will not participate in anything until things get resolved. Well, this is just great…

ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke the news:

Pro-Bowl RB Dalvin Cook no longer will participate in any team-related activities until and unless he receives a “reasonable” deal, a source said Monday.

“He’s out,” a source told ESPN. “Without a reasonable extension, he will not be showing up for camp or beyond.”

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 8, 2020

“He’s out,” A source told ESPN. “Without a reasonable extension, he will not be showing up for camp or beyond.”

To date, the Vikings’ contract proposals to Cook demonstrate that they are a quarterback-first team, per the source. This offseason, the Vikings gave quarterback Kirk Cousins — who had one year left on his deal — a contract extension paying him $30 million per season; Cousins will make $150 million over five seasons. Cook has one year at $1.3 million left on his contract.

Side note: quarterback first team? Is that some sort of a sick joke?

On a personal note, this sucks. I signed Cook to a semi cheap deal in fantasy 3 years ago. Now I’m worried I have the next Le’Veon Bell. WTF… Cook was the one guy I actually wasn’t worried about holding out. Reports in the past indicated he wouldn’t hold out. I guess he now had a change of heart.

On the other hand, I think the Vikings cave here. This is exactly like the Ezekiel Elliott situation. They have no choice but to pay Dalvin. The entire offense runs through him. Without Cook, this offense has not shot. Dak Prescott and Kirk Cousins are similar quarterbacks. Franchise guys but quarterbacks that need to rely on the run game first.

Dalvin Cook: ‘Hurt’ To See Stefon Diggs Traded

This is going to be a fascinating story to follow. You can’t blame Cook for holding out. Running backs have short shelf lives. Dalvin Cook is the 42nd highest paid running back in the league. Could the Vikings maybe Trade Cook? Alexander Mattison proved he’s capable. They already traded Stefon Diggs so who knows. Now we just sit back and wait. The good news is there is a lot of time between now and the start of the season. It’s not like running backs need preseason snaps anyway.