Minnesota Vikings: 3 Standouts vs. Falcons in Week 1
1. Dalvin Cook
The top standout player in the win for the Vikings was running back Dalvin Cook, who looked really impressive in the season debut for Minnesota. The young, promising running back returned to kick off his third season in the NFL following dealing with a few injuries during his first few years in the league.
During his rookie campaign in 2017, Cook missed the final 12 games of the regular season after tearing his ACL in Week 4 of his first professional year. A season ago, Cook was on and off the field with a few different injuries, appearing in a total of
It will be important for Cook to stay healthy within the fairly balanced Minnesota offense in 2019 to allow the Vikings to continue to take the next step after missing the postseason a year ago. With the wide receiving duo of Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs on the outsides, Cook will have plenty of opportunities to operate within Minnesota’s ground game throughout the season.
In Sunday’s win in the regular season opener, Cook tallied a game-best 111 yards rushing on 21 carries and two touchdowns. With an average of 5.3 yards per carry, Cook’s longest rush of the game was a 22-yard run.
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It was good to see Cook back on the field while appearing to be back to fully healthy for the Vikings during their Week 1 victory over the Falcons. For Minnesota to continue to strive towards returning to the playoffs at the end of the regular season, Cook will need to continue to have performances as he did in the first game of the year on Sunday in Minneapolis.