It would be understandable if Vikings rookie Dalvin Cook had a chip on his shoulder after waiting until the second round to be drafted.
But the running back says he’s naturally motivated.
“I always come in self-motivated and I’ve been a motivated person every time I step on the field,” Cook told the NFL Network. “It doesn’t motivate me at all. I got an opportunity to come to a great organization which is Minnesota and I’m going to take full advantage of that; coming in, giving what I got every day. This game only rolls around once and I’m going to take advantage of it.”
Cook ran for 4,464 yards in three seasons at Florida State and rushed for 19 touchdowns in each of the last two seasons. Among the reasons Cook fell to No. 41 overall are ball-security issues, medical concerns and character concerns.
Both Cook and free-agent signing Latavius Murray were brought in to revive a running game that was last in the league last season in both yards per game and yards per carry. That’s not a hard act to follow, but Adrian Peterson’s overall body of work does leave some big shoes to fill. Cook understands that he’s not going to make people forget about Peterson right away.
“It wouldn’t be fair for me to say that about Adrian Peterson because of the things he’s done for the organization,” Cook said.
Cook has to take better care of the ball, behave better off the field and stay healthy before trying to match Peterson’s career numbers.
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