DC2K2020? Dalvin Cook aiming for 2,000 yards in 2020

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Image courtesy of Vikings.com

The off-season that may never end is in full swing, but that hasn’t stopped some Minnesota Vikings players from making bold predictions about the upcoming/distant 2020-21 season. One such player is Dalvin Cook, who has made a few predictions this off-season about his goals for 2020.

The first such goal (or first such PUBLICLY stated goal) came to us courtesy of TMZ Sports last month. TMZ caught Cook walking somewhere in New York City. Looking super fly, Cook exclaimed:

“2,000 yards!”

I know what you’re thinking, does he mean 2,000 total yards (from scrimmage)? Or 2,000 rushing yards? He did clarify, also exclaiming:

“We could go like a 1,500 [rushing] and a 500 [receiving]. 1,500, 500. Or, 1,400, 600!”

While that is news is and of itself (as he’d be only the fourth back to top 2,000 yards from scrimmage in the past two seasons), the larger talker from that initial interaction with Cook came after the paparazzo asked Cook whether or not he’d hold out from the 2020 season in order to get the extension that he wants.

“The business is gonna handle the business”, Cook said (seemingly irritated) as the TMZ source backed off and went back to the initial talker about yardage.

It seems like Cook has maintained that goal as he posted an Instagram story of his workout routine and the following on-screen text (screen shot courtesy of /u/sponsoredbycashapp on Reddit).

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If there’s any running back in the league that already hasn’t eclipsed the 2,000 yardage mark and that could, it’s Cook. 2019 was his coming out party and while he did end up missing two games (to go with the 16 he missed over his first 32), he still posted 1,135 yards on the ground and 519 through the air. If you extrapolated that over 16 games, he would’ve had just under 1,300 yards on the ground and nearly 600 yards through the air. If I remember second grade, that means that he would’ve had 1,900 total yards in 16 games (which means that he could’ve realistically eclipsed 2,000 if he had a big game or two).

The real question is whether or not his body will be able to hold up for 16 games. It’s hard to say whether or not it’s encouraging that his injuries have been different each time. From an ACL tear in 2017, a hammy in 2018, and finally a chest injury in 2019, Cook is either just susceptible to injury or extremely unlucky. Considering the first two were non-contact injuries, as well, just makes things more confusing.

From the looks of his Instagram story, it looks like he’s working his ass off this off-season to ensure that he can make it through the first full season of his career. With Stefon Diggs now in Buffalo, the team is going to need him more than ever, so it’s nice to see that he’s not betting on the 2020 season being delayed. Perhaps any potential time off is just what he needs to rest up and get in even better shape before the season begins. Lord knows the team is going to need him.

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