Dalvin Cook carried the ball just twice during the preseason and hasn’t taken a handoff in a regular season game since tearing his ACL on his 13th carry against the Lions on Oct. 1, 2017.
How much action he’ll get in the season opener between the Vikings and 49ers at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday is a question Cook doesn’t even have the answer to.
“You know, whoever the carries get handed to, we’re all happy with [it] because we know that once the ball is in anybody’s hands in the backfield, in our running back room, something big can happen,” Cook said Wednesday.
Cook is listed atop the depth chart at running back, but Latavius Murray will undoubtedly get plenty of work, and so could running backs Mike Boone and Roc Thomas, who both made the 53-man roster.
“So whoever touches the ball, we know we can get an explosive play out of any one of the guys in our running back room,” Cook said. “So that part, whoever Coach Flip gives the ball to, we’re all satisfied.”
Offensive coordinator John DeFilippo was the QB coach in Philadelphia last season, but if he runs an offense in Minnesota similar to how Frank Reich ran it with the Eagles last season, it won’t be a surprise to see three running backs involved in each game plan.
Philadelphia’s game plans incorporated Jay Ajayi, LeGarrette Blount and Corey Clemente, with Ajayi serving as the feature back but carrying the ball just 9-18 times per game over the final five games of the season (including playoffs).
The equivalent in Minnesota could be a blend of Cook, Murray and Boone, although Thomas and fullback C.J. Ham could touch the ball on occasion, too.
As for Cook’s rehabilitated knee, it’s all good and he’s ready to test it in a real game for the first time in nearly a year.
“My knee is fine, it’s ready to go, I’m ready to play,” Cook said. “Those two carries were a plus, but I’ve been practicing the whole time, getting reps, going full speed … so just ready to get out there and ready to play. That’s it at this point.”
