Dalvin Cook has timetable in mind for signing with a team
Jan 23, 2020; Kissimmee, Florida, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cooke (33) poses with NFL 100th anniversary gloves during NFC practice at ESPN Wide World of Sports. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Dalvin Cook remains a free agent coming off the worst season of his NFL career, and he is looking to get a deal done well before the start of the 2024 season in order to prove himself.
In an appearance on NFL Network’s The Insiders, Cook said he wants to join a team prior to the start of training camp. The veteran running back feels this would be the best way to get his legs under him while simultaneously proving that he can still perform at a high level.
“To be honest, I had this conversation with my agent, and it’s like this year I do want to go to training camp,” Cook said, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com. “I just want to get my legs back under me and feel like myself again. I feel like getting in front of my teammates, new coaches and showing them what I got. I can still cut and still take (the ball) 80 (yards) when it’s time. I just got to get out there and show all these people that Dalvin is still Dalvin.”
Cook went unsigned during the initial wave of free agency. At that point, some veterans prefer to wait out training camp and see what injuries or other opportunities pop up just before the start of the season. Cook does not want to be one of them, as he clearly feels he needs training camp to get some reps in.
Right now, however, it is not clear what landing spots Cook might have. He has consistently argued that his 2023 season, which saw him tally just 214 yards while relegated to a bit-part role with the New York Jets, was just an aberration. He turns 29 in August and was a 1,000-yard rusher as recently as 2022. Despite that, he simply has not been linked to many teams.
Cook still has about two months before training camps start in late July. He may not have the luxury of being too picky in terms of which opportunities come his way.