5 Bold Predictions: Minnesota Vikings vs. Baltimore Ravens – Week 9
By Chris Schad
Cook will have over 30 touches
When Mike Zimmer feels his back against the wall, he turns to what he knows. In the offseason, it was rebuilding his defense instead of leaning into a loaded offensive unit. When it’s during the season, Zimmer leans on running the football.
This should draw a hefty sigh from Dalvin Cook, who is set up for a monster workload against the Ravens. When Zimmer’s job was on the line after a 1-5 start last season, he loaded up Cook, who averaged a whopping 30 touches per game over his final nine contests.
That workload had to be the plan this season, where Cook averaged 25 touches per game over the first two weeks before injuring his ankle. When he fully returned against the Carolina Panthers in Week 6, Cook posted 31 touches before resting over the bye week.
Of all the things that went wrong against Dallas, Zimmer lamented the Vikings not sticking with the run. There’s a good chance Cook won’t finish with just 18 touches like he had against the Cowboys, and an even better chance he could set a season-high as the pressure turns up around Zimmer.