The Minnesota Vikings anticipated the worst after Dalvin Cook went down with a knee injury in Sunday’s loss to the Detroit Lions. Unfortunately, their fears were confirmed. Cook will undergo season-ending surgery to repair the torn ACL in his left knee, Vikings coach Mike Zimmer confirmed Monday.
The rookie running back, who was on pace to top 400 yards rushing through the first four games of the season, suffered a non-contact knee injury early in the third quarter Sunday.
Cook took a handoff from Case Keenum up the middle of the field for a 10-yard gain. Upon cutting to his right to avoid being tackled by Lions safety Tavon Wilson, Cook reached down to grab his left knee and fumbled the ball.
Zimmer said Cook will need to wait until the swelling goes down before having surgery. The likelihood of the knee having sustained other damage didn’t raise any red flags.
“Like on most of these ACLs, there’s a little bit of cartilage, meniscus,” Zimmer said. “It’s a normal, typical ACL (tear).”
Zimmer spoke with Cook on Sunday about the confidence that he has in the Vikings’ medical staff to help the running back return after surgery.
Minnesota has dealt with an onslaught of non-contact knee injuries within the past 13 months with quarterbacks Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater, and before that with former running back Adrian Peterson, who returned from an ACL tear that he sustained at the end of the 2011 season and was named the NFL’s MVP during his 2012 campaign.
“I talked to him last night about it,” Zimmer said. “About the doctors that we have here and the medical staff and how they were able to rehab the last great runner here. I expect (Cook) to come back and be the same as he was.”
With Cook sidelined for the rest of the season, Minnesota will look to Latavius Murray to take on the rookie’s workload.
Murray signed a three-year, $15 million contract in the offseason before undergoing ankle surgery that kept him out for several months. Zimmer did not rule out the possibility of the Vikings signing another running back to help out in Cook’s absence.
Source: ESPN
My Conclusion:
It seemed like Minnesota was treading in the right direction, but once again they’re hampered by injuries. With the uncertainties with Sam Bradford and his injured knee, the defense can carry the team so far. As far as Dalvin Cook goes, seeing he’s a former Florida State Seminole I was rooting for him. He was one of the league leaders in rushing and provided explosive plays for the offense. Since he became someone to pay attention to; it opened up the passing game to help Case Keenum more comfortable in the pocket. Here’s hoping to a speedy recovery for Dalvin Cook.
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