New report sheds light into how much money free agent RB Dalvin Cook is seeking

Dalvin Cook became one of the best available players in the NFL once his time with the Minnesota Vikings ended in a buyout. Still, when it comes to his next team and contract, making pennies on the dollar isn’t interesting to Cook.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald shared that information in a response within a Twitter thread. He said that, per his reports, Cook is looking for a contract with a value that was worth what his next year in Minnesota would have been had they not gone their separate ways. That would put the number in the ballpark of $10.4 million.

Cook is entering his seventh NFL season after playing in 73 games for Minnesota. In that time, he was one of the league’s best backs as he has rushed for over 1,100 yards per season and 43 touchdowns overall in the past four years. He has also caught 170 passes for a hair under 1,400 receiving yards and three reception touchdowns since 2019. All of that amounted to four-straight Pro Bowl selections for the former Florida State product.

Back in 2020, the Vikings signed Cook to a five-year, $63 million deal. The 2023 season would have been the fourth year of that contract had Minnesota not bought him out after being unable to find a trade partner to take the near 28-year-old.

Cook is going to take his time in this process considering what he’s looking for monetarily. The big question is where is he going to get that number from or which team is most willing to reach an agreement upon that value?

NFL insider predicts Dalvin Cook will sign with a ‘surprise’ team

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero believes Dalvin Cook‘s next team will surprise the football world.

In comparing the two biggest offensive free agents on the market at the moment in Cook and former Arizona Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, Pelissero made an interesting remark regarding where he believes both will end up.

“I mean listen, I think that Dalvin Cook is going to land with a surprise team,” explained Pelissero during an interview on The Rich Eisen Show. “I think that DeAndre Hopkins is most likely going to land with one of the teams we think it’s going to be.”

While many have suspected some teams, like the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, Denver Broncos and New York Jets, Pelissero believes almost every team could make a case for signing Cook, aside from the Vikings, of course.

“Dalvin Cook, he’s a running back. He’s a really good running back. You can drop him in to any one of the 32 teams. I think probably not back to Minnesota, but the other 31 teams, and he’s going to be productive,” added Pelissero. “Now there’s some fits that are going to be better than others, there’s no question about it. What’d he tell us yesterday? ‘I want to go a place where I’m valued, want to go a place where I’m getting the football. I’m not looking to go into some place and be a rotational back.’ Not at this stage of his career. He’s a guy who, he gets lathered up. He thrives on volume. That’s what he’s going to want. 

“What spot is that? Give me the field. If it’s the Dolphins or Broncos versus the field … I’ll take the field. I’ll take the field.”