Dalvin Cook doesn't have a new deal, but that isn't stopping him from giving his full effort to the 2020 season.
So much for the holdout drama. Cook, who is at Vikings training camp, told reporters Friday he's not focused on a new deal, but on being the best he can for his team.
"I'm out there full go, 1,000 percent," Cook told reporters Friday, via The Athletic's Chad Graff.
Cook has maintained a public desire to get a long-term deal done in Minnesota since we last checked in with him in late January during Pro Bowl practices. Little has changed in that regard, though the rumor of a potential holdout added a little spice to the situation.
The holdout buzz died down when folks realized the new collective bargaining agreement makes it financially prohibitive to hold out for a new contract, essentially diminishing if not vanquishing the power of a holdout entirely. Thus, we see Cook in Vikings camp, where he's got his eye on another 1,000-plus-yard season, not on the number of millions in his bank account.
"This is where I want to be at," Cook said. "I was going to be here regardless of speculation."
Speculation drives offseason headlines, but it does little for a player before he actually arrives at the negotiating table to sign on the dotted line. The exact timing of that moment's arrival for Cook remains to be seen, but he'll be available for Minnesota's attempt to make it two straight playoff berths in 2020.
And as he sees it, his unique presence should help catapult the Vikings into contention.
"I consider myself today's running back," Cook said, per the team's official Twitter account. "Today's running back, they require a lot -- to catch the football, pass-block, run the football, spread out wide, go run routes. They require everything out of you."
It will require a new contract before long.
