Brakes Pumped on Former Viking’s Big Idea
Former Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook is a free agent after general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah parted ways with the longtime playmaker two weeks ago.
Cook, 27, can sign anywhere in the league but recently expressed interest in playing with fellow free agent DeAndre Hopkins.
Brakes Pumped on Former Viking’s Big Idea
Cook said a few days ago about the prospect of playing alongside Hopkins, “If we end up on the same roster, that would be something epic for the NFL.”
The ex-Viking also declared to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, “The money is going to come, and that’s going to happen. But like as far as going to lift that Super Bowl trophy up, he (Hopkins) has the same mindset as me.”
And as tantalizing as a pairing with Hopkins might be for Cook, it could fall on the ash heap of best-laid plans. Cook and Hopkins would basically need to find a Super Bowl-contending team with enough cap space for both players that — by the way — needs an RB1 and WR1. So, you know, a tall order and ask.
Schefter joined The Pat McAfee Show on Wednesday and dumped cold water on the prospect of a Cook-Hopkins duo, “Cook was like, ‘I’d love to play with him. It would be epic.’ Now, do I think that’s going to happen? Ultimately, probably not.”
Cook turns 28 in August, and Hopkins’s 31st birthday was June 6th.
“But it’s not out of the question. It’s just a question of whether a team would be willing to pay both. Whether each guy might be willing to take a little bit less to be together. Again, not a likely scenario, but not out of the question,” Schefter told McAfee.
Each man will find a new NFL home soon, rest assured, but trekking to the same team together is a longshot and probably a theory best left for NBA-like team-building. Good football teams in June simply don’t have the cap space for two Pro Bowlers, nor are they chomping at the bit to fill out a depth chart. They’ve done that by now.
If Schefter is incorrect, however, the Dallas Cowboys, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, or New England Patriots could provide a home for Cook and Hopkins, based on cap space and roster need (loosely speaking).
Individually, Cook has been linked in the rumor mill to the Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Denver Broncos, and Buffalo Bills. The New England Patriots, Tennessee Titans, Detroit Lions, and Bills, among others, are considered the frontrunners for Hopkins’ free agency.
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Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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