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Ladies and gentlemen, our short, regional nightmare is over.
When the Minnesota Vikings’ veterans reported to camp on Tuesday, running back Dalvin Cook was with them, ending the speculation that he would hold out. He had said earlier this offseason that Cook would not participate in any team activities until he received a “reasonable” contract extension offer.
This also brings an end to the game of “telephone” that happened over this past weekend, where Cook’s agent and Mike Zimmer went back and forth about whether or not the head coach had spoken with Cook about his intention of reporting to camp.
Cook is in the final year of his four-year rookie contract, and with the new rules that the NFL has put forth concerning COVID-19 Cook now only has to play in one game to pick up an accrued season to allow him to hit unrestricted free agency before the 2021 season if the Vikings do not sign him to an extension before then.
Hopefully the Vikings and Cook can work something out, whether it’s during the preseason or the actual season itself. For now, however, the star running back is officially in the fold and will not be holding out.
So we have that going for us. Which is nice.