3 reasons why Dalvin Cook is the best running back in the NFL right now
By Chris Schad
The running back position has been a wasteland in 2020
If there’s a flaw in Dalvin Cook’s game, it’s that he hasn’t been able to stay on the field. If you take Sunday’s performance into account, Cook did what he did coming off of a groin injury that kept him out of Minnesota’s Week 6 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. But when you consider the current state of running backs, Cook seems to be doing just fine.
Christian McCaffrey is considered the top running back in the league, but he’s missed a number of games this season due to a high ankle sprain. Ezekiel Elliott can’t hang onto the football and he has seen his effectiveness drop each of the past two seasons after signing a monster contract with the Cowboys. Derrick Henry is great, but he doesn’t offer much in the passing game. Alvin Kamara is an all-around back, but he isn’t the between the tackles runner that Cook is.
Put everything together and Cook is the total package that other running backs have failed to be in 2020. This isn’t to say that Cook is suddenly going to invoke memories of 2012 Adrian Peterson, but on Sunday he sure did his best impersonation of the Vikings all-time leading rusher. By dominating at a level that required Kirk Cousins to throw the ball 14 times, Cook put the entire Minnesota offense on his back and willed them to victory.
When healthy, Cook is the best running back in the NFL. If he can stay on the field, he’s an essential part of Minnesota’s success on offense.