Dalvin Cook deemed a fantasy bust after his 2018 season

The Minnesota Vikings running back struggled to stay on the field in 2018, meaning his numbers were not as high as some might have predicted.

Despite coming off a torn ACL, the Minnesota Vikings had high hopes for Dalvin Cook in his second season with the team. But Cook’s time on the field didn’t exactly go as planned for the Vikings in 2018.

After his first two games of the year, it appeared as though the young running back had regained some of the form he displayed during his rookie season in Minnesota. However, Cook ended up being struck with the injury bug once again.

He ended up missing a total of five games due to a hamstring injury in 2018 and he was also on a pitch count for a few other contests.

Unsurprisingly, Cook’s final numbers last season were not as high as some had envisioned for him. Especially those who opted to select him to be on their fantasy football teams.

Fantasy football depends on players to put up impressive stats and score a bunch of points. Cook did neither in 2018 and it has led to 5th Down Fantasy giving him the label of a bust.

The young Vikings rusher was included in 5th Down Fantasy’s recent list of the top fantasy running back busts of 2018. Also earning the illustrious honor were David Johnson, Leonard Fournette, Royce Freeman, and Alex Collins.

The explanation behind Cook making this list related to his numbers from last year not being up to par with the preseason expectations he was given. He was regarded as a No. 1 or No. 2 running back for fantasy owners in their drafts last year, but he certainly didn’t produce like one.

Cook’s production should see an improvement in 2019 though. Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer wants the offense’s focus to get back to running the ball and this should lead to better performances from their young back.

With his play during his first two seasons not blowing anyone out of the water, Cook might actually end up being a fantasy sleeper in 2019. His potential for next season is still fairly high though, so some lucky fantasy owners may finally get to reap the benefits of having Cook on their roster.