On Monday, Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey signed a four-year, $64 million deal. That’s $16 million annually, making him the highest-paid running back in NFL history.
You better believe the Vikings and running back Dalvin Cook were paying attention to that.
Cook, who made his first career Pro Bowl in 2019, will be a free agent after the 2020 season.
In a recent interview with Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press, Cook said that he believed he was the best running back in the NFL. While he certainly could be talent-wise, the difference between Cook and McCaffrey has been availability.
Through three seasons, Cook has missed 19 of 48 games while McCaffrey has missed zero games.
McCaffrey’s per-game numbers were also better than Cook’s in 2019.
McCaffrey averaged 86.7 rushing yards and 62.8 receiving yards per game while Cook averaged 81.1 rushing yards and 37.1 receiving yards.
There’s a good chance we’ll see Cook get around the $10-$12 million annual range. It still seems like too much money for a running back. Contracts for guys like Todd Gurley, Le’Veon Bell and David Johnson haven’t aged well.
We’ll see what Vikings GM Rick Spielman and his staff decide to do. McCaffrey’s deal certainly doesn’t help the Vikings in these negotiations.
Cook, meanwhile, should be pretty darn happy.
