Minnesota Vikings 2019 in Review: Grading the offense
By Chris Schad
Running Backs
After a pair of injury-riddled seasons to begin his career, 2019 was the season where Dalvin Cook stayed healthy and it was glorious. Cook reached the 1,000 yard plateau for the first time in his career, running for 1,135 yards and 13 touchdowns while also becoming an explosive weapon in the passing game, catching 53 passes for 519 yards.
Outside of a two-game stint thanks to a shoulder/chest injury that kept him out of the lineup, the question for the Vikings now is whether they should pay Cook ahead of the 2020 season. The 23-year-old will be entering the final year of his rookie deal, but those contracts are seldom played out after the Le’Veon Bell situation in Pittsburgh and Melvin Gordon‘s unsuccessful holdout in Los Angeles last year.
If the Vikings don’t decide to pay Cook, they can lean on Alexander Mattison, who had a solid rookie year with 462 yards and a touchdown. An ankle injury that sidelined him for three games late in the season robbed Vikings fans a chance to see what he could do in a starting role, but he looked to be a great compliment to Cook’s explosive running style when on the field.
Mike Boone got in on the party with a late-season flurry as well, making a pair of starts and running at 5.6 yards a carry. It’s unlikely that Boone would get the full-time starting gig in Minnesota, but he proved to be effective in a pinch and probably will hang around the roster moving forward.