Letter to the football gods: Dalvin Cook

Dear old faithful football gods,

First things first, y’all have already gifted Minnesota with Dalvin Cook. Bless you for that. It almost seems like y’all have been teasing the Vikings organization, the fan base and the NFL with his injuries. We’ve seen flashes of what Cook is capable of within last two years, but, man, I want to see him be an immortal force on the field.

I only ask for one thing: Please, keep Dalvin Cook healthy for his junior campaign, please.

Cook looked meaner, stronger, faster and seemed to have a chip on his shoulder during Sunday’s win against the Atlanta Falcons. Cook averaged 5.3 yards per carry en route to 111 rushing yards from 21 carries. He found the endzone twice.

I know I’m not the only one who wants to see what Cook can do in a full 16-game regular season.. He was on pace for a heckuva year to start his freshman campaign. Through four games he managed 354 yards from 74 carries with two touchdowns.

Although Cook had a good start from a rushing standpoint, he had an even better start to his receiving game. The dual-threat running back caught 11 passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns. Unfortunately, he tore his ACL during week four against the Detroit Lions.

Last season, Cook once again battled an injury. He suffered a hamstring injury in week two, re-injured it week four and didn’t play in another game until week nine against the Lions (coincidence?).

That’s when things started to turn around for Cook. He finished the game with 89 rushing yards from 10 carries. Cook averaged 2.7 YPC in the first three games of the season, but quickly flipped the script once healthy, averaging 5.3 YPC in his final eight appearances.

Backup running back Alexander Mattison could also benefit from Cook being healthy. This allows Mattison to grow as an NFL tail back and learn from Cook, his counterpart. Quarterback Kirk Cousins would be a beneficiary of Cook’s good health. He’ll always have someone trustworthy to check-down to if need be.

With all that being said, football gods, not only would y’all be helping Dalvin Cook, but you’d also be helping Mattison, Cousins, the fanbase and the whole Minnesota Vikings organization. Y’all would also help keep the dream alive of the Vikings winning a Super Bowl.

Bring me back to the Adrian Peterson days when All Day couldn’t be stopped. Bring back the nostalgic feeling of Robert Smith taking it to the house, or for the older generation, maybe some Chuck Foreman, Bill or Ted Brown. The Vikings have a stockpile of great former running backs and I just want to see that continue with D.C.

Thanks for reading!

Sincerely,

Lucas Ailport—Vikings Lover

Oh, and P.S.

SKOL VIKINGS, BABY!