Week 2 at Green Bay Packers
As we expected, Minnesota leaned heavily on Dalvin Cook, and he delivered. He carried the ball 21 times (third-most among backs in the first week) for 111 yards and two touchdowns. He even caught two of Kirk Cousins' eight passes on the day (nine yards). Minnesota clearly has a run-first mentality, and Cook should benefit every week from that as long as he stays healthy.
He draws a decent matchup against the Packers this week. It's hard to know too much about Green Bay's run defense because it wasn't really tested in Week 1. Chicago ran just 11 times with its backs against Green Bay. Expect Minnesota to let Cook get many opportunities, which makes him a must-start RB1.
Week 1 vs. Atlanta Falcons
Dalvin Cook was plagued with injuries last year, which forced him to miss games completely or not play entirely in games he was active. Once he was healthy, though, he produced like we expected him to. He finished with 596 scrimmage yards and four touchdowns in his final six games. Now that he's had a full offseason to recover, he should be even more ready to go. He showed off some explosiveness in Week 3 of the preseason, busting off an 85-yard touchdown run.
He should start off the season hot as he gets a favorable matchup against the Falcons. Atlanta gave up the sixth-most fantasy points to opposing backs in 2018, With Minnesota going with a run-first approach in 2019, Cook should see plenty of touches. We like him as a strong RB1 play in Week 1.
Fantasy Upside
When healthy, Dalvin Cook was successful in 2018. He finished with 715 scrimmage yards in his final eight regular season games returning from injury. He’s a threat on the ground and as a receiver, as he had 3+ receptions in all of his starts but one (excluding Week 4 when he left early due to injury). With a new offensive coordinator this season, we expect the Vikings to go with a run-heavy approach. The Vikings went with OC Kevin Stefanski late last season, and in four games under Stefanski, Cook averaged 18.0 touches for 103.5 yards and 0.75 touchdowns per game.
Fantasy Downside
As we briefly mentioned above, “when healthy” Cook was successful. Staying healthy has been an issue for Cook since entering the league as he started just four games in his rookie year before tearing his ACL. Sports injury predictor has Cook at a 57.6% chance of injury, which is 10th highest among backs.
2019 Bottom Line
Really the only downside to Cook this season is if he misses games due to injury. If he’s able to stay healthy, there’s no reason he can’t finish the season near the top 10 at his position. He’s a great runner in a run-heavy offense, and has enough receiving skills to add a nice bonus each week. He’s a great option for fantasy owners in the second round of drafts, and will be a great pickup if he stays off the injury report.
Week 17 vs. Chicago Bears
Dalvin Cook topped 100 total yards again, the third time in his last four games. It's late in the season, but now that's he's healthy, Cook has lived up to the hype for owners who drafted him early in their leagues. He gets a really tough matchup this week against the Bears, however. Chicago is allowing the second-fewest fantasy points against opposing backs and Cook ran 9 times for 12 yards against them earlier in the year. He's still an RB1 option, but he's got bust potential in a tough matchup.
Week 16 at Detroit Lions
Dalvin Cook is officially back and healthy for those playoff teams that managed to survive without him all season. He carried the ball 19 times for 136 yards, scoring twice while also adding 27 yards as a receiver. Perhaps it was just the matchup, or perhaps it was the new OC, but Minnesota leaned on the run last week, and it paid off in a big way.
Cook gets a decent matchup this week against the Lions, a team he finished with over 100 yards against earlier in the season (although that was mostly due to one 70-yard run). Detroit is giving up an average of 115.4 rushing yards per game. We like Cook as a lower-end RB1 choice this week.
Week 15 vs. Miami Dolphins
Dalvin Cook appears to be back to his normal self now, which is probably too late for fantasy owners who drafted him. He finished with 83 total yards and a touchdown as he's now averaging 88 yards over his last three games.
He gets a favorable matchup against the Dolphins this week, who are allowing the eighth-most fantasy points to opposing backs. Miami is giving up the third-most rushing yards per game (139.5) which is why we like Cook as a lower-end RB1 option.
Week 14 at Seattle Seahawks
Dalvin Cook finally ran the ball well for a change, but Minnesota didn't give him many opportunities to carry it. Cook finished with 84 yards on just nine carries. But he was a big factor as a receiver, catching eight passes for 22 yards.
He gets a decent matchup against the Seahawks this week who are allowing over 110 rushing yards per game while giving up a league-worst 5.1 yards per carry. Cook should gain some ground yards while maintaining his role as an involved receiver out of the backfield. We like him as a strong RB2 option.
Week 13 at New England Patriots
Dalvin Cook is really struggling as a runner this season. If you take away his one 70-yard run, he's averaging 2.4 yards per carry. Thankfully for fantasy owners, he's made up for it by being a solid receiver. He caught three passes for 47 yards and a touchdown last week and is catching up to his rushing yards (228) with his receiving (172).
He gets a somewhat tough matchup against the Patriots this week where you can expect similar production from him. He'll likely struggle as a rusher, make a few plays as a receiver, and have a shot at a score. He can be viewed as an RB2 option.
Week 12 vs. Green Bay Packers
Dalvin Cook led the Vikings in rushing yards last week ... with 12 yards. Aside from a 70-yard run vs. the Lions, Cook hasn't been able to do a whole lot this season. He's missed most of the year due to injury, and he's been pretty poor in his return from that injury. Maybe he'll get going at some point, but it's certainly been a frustrating year for Cook owners.
He gets a somewhat favorable matchup vs. the Packers this week. Green Bay has allowed at least 110 rushing yards to backs in four of the last five games, giving up four rushing touchdowns in that span. Cook had 90 yards vs. Green Bay earlier in the year, and can be viewed as an RB2 option in Week 12.
Week 11 at Chicago Bears
Dalvin Cook surprised many by returning before the bye week. He broke off a 70-yard run, but that was about it. Outside of that carry, he had nine carries for 19 yards. He did add four receptions for 20 yards on top of that, though. With the extra bye week, we expect Cook to be fully healthy and get more touches than he did in Week 9.
Cook gets a brutal matchup vs. Chicago this week as the Bears have allowed the fourth-fewest fantasy points to backs. Chicago has held backs to 60 rushing yards or less in 6-of-9 games this season while only giving up one rushing score to the position all year. Cook can be viewed as an RB2 play.
