Report: Vikings to release Dalvin Cook

It appears as though the months of speculation about Dalvin Cook’s future with the Minnesota Vikings are finally at an end.

According to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, the Vikings have not been able to find a trade partner and will be releasing Cook. Per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the transaction will actually take place tomorrow, presumably in case a last-minute offer comes to fruition.

The Vikings made Cook their first selection in the 2017 NFL Draft, taking him in the second round (they didn’t have a first-round pick that season). After struggling with injuries during his first two years in the league, including a torn ACL that ended his rookie year after just four games, Cook put up four consecutive 1,000-yard seasons for the Vikings, including a career-high 1,557 yards in 2020.

Cook leaves the Vikings as the third-leading rusher in team history in terms of yardage, with his 5,993 yards trailing only Adrian Peterson and Robert Smith in that category.

The release of Cook will open up about $9 million in salary cap space for the Vikings while incurring a dead money hit of around $5.1 million.

It’s not a surprising move, but it’s still a bit jarring to see a player of Cook’s caliber being let go by the Vikings. The team will now, presumably, take a more committee-based approach at running back, led my Alexander Mattison and supplemented by Ty Chandler and rookie DeWayne McBride.

We want to wish Dalvin Cook the best of luck going forward. . .except, of course, for when he plays the Vikings.