Dalvin Cook

Broncos Unlikely To Sign Dalvin Cook

June 11th, 2023 at 9:30pm CST by Rory Parks

The Broncos’ running back depth chart is presently topped by Javonte Williams, who tore his ACL in October, and career second fiddle Samaje Perine. Given that, and given GM George Paton‘s Vikings ties, Denver has been considered a logical landing spot for four-time Pro Bowl RB Dalvin Cook, who was released by Minnesota several days ago.

Mike Klis of 9News.com has thrown some cold water on those rumors, reporting that the Broncos “do not appear to be in on” Cook. Before Cook’s release became official, Klis reported that Denver was highly unlikely to swing an eleventh-hour trade for him, and financial considerations certainly played a part in that decision. Had the Broncos acquired Cook via trade, they would have been on the hook for his $10.4MM salary in 2023, as Cook had no desire to work out a restructure as part of a trade. And the Vikings, who clearly cut Cook for cap reasons, may not have been inclined to eat much salary to facilitate a swap.

Even though Cook is now on the free agent market, money remains a key issue. Per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (via Twitter), Cook still wants to make close to the $10.4MM salary he was due to earn with the Vikings, and multiple reporters (including Jackson) have suggested that he is willing to be patient in his efforts to secure that payout. At present, the Broncos only have about $6MM of cap space.

Of course, Denver could create the necessary salary cap room if it really wanted to, but on-field factors are also influencing the club’s decision to stay away from Cook. Williams participated in OTAs, and though he has yet to take part in 11-on-11 drills, Klis estimates that the third-year pro has a better than 50-50 chance to start the regular season opener. Williams clearly has RB1 ability, and even if he is not fully healthy for the start of the 2023 campaign, it does not make sense to sign Cook to a lucrative contract and not have a spot for Williams when he is ready to return to the field.

Klis does believe that the Broncos could seek to add another player with starting experience to its running back room, as the options behind Williams and Perine — Tony Jones, Jr., Tyler Badie, and UDFA rookie Jaleel McLaughlin — are either uninspiring or unproven. Such an addition, though, would be considerably less expensive than Cook.

If Cook’s market does not materialize in the way that he hopes, or if the current reports on Williams’ prognosis prove overly optimistic, it is possible that the Broncos could circle back to Cook (after all, they have reportedly monitored the Florida State product for some time). Until then, however, it appears that the Dolphins will remain the frontrunners for his services.

Latest On Dalvin Cook’s Vikings Departure

June 9th, 2023 at 10:01pm CST by Adam La Rose

Earlier today, it was confirmed by the Vikings themselves that they have moved on from running back Dalvin Cook. The move brought an end to a lengthy period of speculation and trade rumors, something which was largely a result of each party’s financial approach to the situation.

By releasing Cook, Minnesota will see $9MM in cap savings. That adds to the money they have saved by parting ways with the likes of Eric Kendricks and Adam Thielen, other veteran contributors to the team’s 13-4 season in 2022. The Vikings are resetting financially at many positions this year (with the notable exception of quarterback), which helped inform their decision to turn over starting running back duties to Alexander Mattison.

When discussing Cook’s release on the Rich Eisen Show, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero noted that the Vikings never offered a pay cut to the four-time Pro Bowler (video link). Cook, 27, was due a base salary of $10.4MM in 2023, with a scheduled cap hit of just over $14.1MM. Lowering those figures through a restructure could have extended his Minnesota tenure, but the team made a two-year commitment to Mattison in March, signaling their intent to shed costs at the RB position.

Still, Minnesota explored the idea of a re-worked Cook deal (along with a trade) for months, as detailed by Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Pelissero adds that Cook had no desire to work out a restructure as part of a trade, a stance which has now left him free to join the team of his choice. His free agent process will be worth watching, though it may not develop with much urgency.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets that Cook – who is due $2MM in guranteed money from the Vikings – “plans to be patient in waiting for the right situation.” The Dolphins could very well represent that for the Miami native and Florida State alum; as was the case before, the Dolphins can be considered a strong suitor for Cook on the free agent market. The value of his next deal (wherever it comes from) will come in below the one he had been playing on, but it will have implications for the Vikings as well as his new team.

Pelissero’s colleague Mike Garafolo notes that Cook’s guarantees include offset language (Twitter link). Minnesota would thus be in line to recoup the $2MM owed to him assuming he lands a deal worth more than that amount from his new employer. The running back market was very modest at the onset of free agency, but a patient approach to the next chapter of his career could yield a favorable on-field and financial situation for Cook. The Vikings, meanwhile, will look for ways to reallocate the money saved through his release as they aim to build around their young core.

Vikings Release RB Dalvin Cook; Dolphins, Broncos On Radar

June 9th, 2023 at 12:09pm CST by Sam Robinson

JUNE 9: As expected, no trade suitors emerged for Cook as teams knew that he would soon hit the open market. The release is now official, per a team announcement, meaning he will be free to sign with a new team any time after 3:00pm Central today.

“I hold Dalvin in the highest regard and am grateful for his contributions on and off the field,” a statement from head coach Kevin O’Connell reads in part. “Dalvin’s approach to the game and his commitment to sportsmanship is clearly respected across the league. We appreciate Dalvin’s positivity, energy and leadership and will be pulling for him in the future.”

Adofo-Mensah likewise praised Cook for his time with the Vikings, which has come to a close after four straight Pro Bowl campaigns. It will be interesting to monitor how his free agent market takes shape.

JUNE 8: After months of trade rumors, the Vikings plan to conclude the offseason Dalvin Cook saga with a release. Minnesota now intends to cut its six-year starting running back, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports (on Twitter).

The Vikings intend to follow through with this long-rumored separation Friday, Pelissero tweets. While this potentially opens the door to a last-ditch trade effort, Minnesota has dangled Cook in deals for several weeks now. No takers have emerged. Cook is a vested veteran and will move straight to free agency if/when cut. The Vikes, as should be expected here, will make a final effort to trade Cook, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter tweets.

As for potential suitors, Schefter names the Dolphins — who discussed Cook with the Vikings earlier this offseason — and Broncos (Twitter link). Denver has a clear tie, with GM George Paton being in Minnesota when the Vikes drafted Cook in 2017 second round, but the team also signed Samaje Perine and has starter Javonte Williams already participating in offseason work despite tearing an ACL in October.

The Broncos are highly unlikely to make an 11th-hour trade offer for Cook, per 9News’ Mike Klis, who adds they should not be considered a lock to pursue him in free agency. But Schefter notes the team has been monitoring the talented back for weeks. The Dolphins hold nearly $14MM in cap space; the Broncos sit at just more than $10MM. Other suitors are believed to be in the mix once Cook officially becomes available at 3pm CT Friday, but these are the two known candidates at this point.

Cook’s positional value and $10.4MM base salary have almost definitely impeded strong trade offers from emerging. A release will save the Vikings $9MM, though the Pro Bowler’s dead money would be spread over two offseasons. Cook has $2MM in guaranteed salary owed; that will bump his career earnings past $34MM. His next contract will not come close to the five-year, $63MM contract the Vikings authorized before the 2020 season, but an interesting free agency sweepstakes looks likely to launch soon.

As a South Florida native who played at Florida State, Cook is believed to have interest in heading to Miami. The Dolphins are expected to make an offer, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets. This would come after the team made several moves at running back this offseason. Miami re-signed Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson and Myles Gaskin, though the trio’s combined guarantees do not top $6MM, and used a third-round pick on Texas A&M speedster Devon Achane.

With Tyreek Hill‘s $30MM-per-year contract the only notable pact attached to a Dolphins quarterback or skill-position player, Miami makes sense here. Cook, who is going into his age-28 season, could slide in as a hired gun. The Broncos, conversely, have Russell Wilson tied to a monster extension and Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick on eight-figure-per-year deals. That said, Denver did well to sign both receivers before Hill and Co. transformed that market in 2022. Unlike the Dolphins, the Broncos did not draft a running back this year.

Cook’s Florida ties could seemingly prompt the Broncos or an unknown suitor to make a trade offer before the release processes, as to keep the back from joining the Dolphins. The Vikings kept Za’Darius Smith on their roster for months, despite the edge rusher lobbying for a release in March, before agreeing to a low-level trade with the Browns. It would be interesting to see how much of Cook’s base salary the Vikings would be willing to eat to facilitate a trade. As of Thursday morning, Cook remains under contract through 2025.

Passing Chuck Foreman for third place in Vikings rushing yardage last season, Cook has reeled off four straight 1,100-plus-yard years. Despite nagging injuries that have emerged since his rookie-year ACL tear, Cook has proven fairly durable. He has only missed more than two games in a season once over the past four years (in 2021) and played all 18 Vikings contests in 2022. Cook did undergo shoulder surgery earlier this offseason, however. Only Derrick Henry and Nick Chubb have accumulated more rushing yards than Cook (5,024) since 2019.

The Vikings moving on from Cook this week will keep him away from their mandatory minicamp, where longtime backup Alexander Mattison‘s ascent is now set to take place in earnest. The Vikings re-signed Mattison to a two-year deal worth just $7MM — in line with the Dolphins’ low-level RB pacts and others on the buyer’s market that expectedly formed this offseason — but nearly all of it is fully guaranteed. With Cook in limbo, Mattison — a former third-round pick who has occupied Minnesota’s RB2 slot for four years — is set to begin his age-25 season as Minnesota’s starter.

Despite the Vikings going 13-4 in 2022 (albeit one with a negative point differential), second-year GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has already parted with Vikings mainstays Adam Thielen and Eric Kendricks this offseason. This Cook move will leave Harrison Smith, Danielle Hunter and Brian O’Neill as the final ties to the homegrown core Rick Spielman built during the 2010s. The Vikings agreed to terms to retain Smith on a pay cut this offseason but have taken calls on Hunter, whose contract has been an issue for most of its duration.

Latest On Dolphins, Dalvin Cook

June 8th, 2023 at 10:10pm CST by Sam Robinson

The runaway leaders in terms of mentions as a Dalvin Cook suitor this offseason, the Dolphins may soon have their opportunity to add the Pro Bowler in free agency. The Vikings are planning to release Cook on Friday, barring an 11th-hour trade agreement.

If Cook reaches free agency, Miami should probably be considered the favorite. After a report last week indicated the Dolphins will be expected to pursue Cook if he ends up in free agency, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes (via Twitter) the South Florida native is believed to be “very much intrigued” by playing for his hometown team.

Cook, who will turn 28 later this summer, posted an image of him leaving Hard Rock Stadium (during a 2022 Vikings-Dolphins game) on Instagram today. No team has appeared willing to take on Cook’s $10.4MM salary, but seeing as the Florida State alum appears to be quite interested in a Dolphins deal, the Vikings seeing if any of the other suitors come forward with a last-ditch trade proposal seems like something to monitor.

The Dolphins discussed Cook with the Vikings in March, were still believed to be in the mix before the draft and, despite selecting Devon Achane in Round 3, remain on the radar. Miami gave modest guarantees to re-signed backs Jeff Wilson and Raheem Mostert, both of whom having pasts with Mike McDaniel in San Francisco, and re-signed Myles Gaskin. The Gaskin deal does not include any guarantees. But Mostert, Wilson and Achane still represent a fairly full running back room. Cook, the league’s only back to rush for at least 1,100 yards in each of the past four seasons, would likely bolster that situation further.

Even if the Dolphins do make Cook an offer, the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson does not see it being something close to the deal the Vikings are about to remove from their payroll (Twitter link). That said, Jackson confirms the Dolphins remain interested. While a few suitors would naturally be better for the four-time Pro Bowler’s market, he probably should not count on anything on the level of the $12.6MM-per-year deal he inked with Minnesota just before the 2020 season. Three years remain on that contract.

The Broncos are believed to have monitored Cook for a bit now, though they have Samaje Perine in place as a Javonte Williams committee partner. Williams has also made strides in his return from ACL and LCL tears this offseason. Denver also just authorized a $5.5MM guarantee for Frank Clark, cutting into its cap space.

Dolphins Inquired On RB D’Andre Swift

June 8th, 2023 at 8:42pm CST by Ben Levine

The Dolphins have been heavily connected to Dalvin Cook, but that wasn’t the first time the team considered bringing in an experienced running back. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler (and via ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques), Miami inquired about D’Andre Swift before the RB was traded from the Lions to the Eagles.

Swift’s production in Detroit didn’t match Cook’s Pro Bowl-caliber stats in Minnesota, and the 24-year-old certainly wouldn’t match the upside of the soon-to-be free agent. Still, the running back would have provided the Dolphins with an intriguing option in the backfield. Despite finding himself in and out of the starting lineup, Swift averaged more than 900 yards from scrimmage and scored 25 touchdowns during his three seasons in Detroit.

Swift was ultimately traded to the Eagles for a fourth-round pick, and the Dolphins ended up pivoting to Texas A&M running back Devon Achane in the third round. Swift is only owed $1.7MM in the final year of his rookie contract.

It was assumed the Achane pick would be the end of the team’s major moves at the position. Both Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr. seem locked into roster spots after leading Miami’s rushing attack in 2022. Former starter Myles Gaskin is also still around (albeit with a non-guaranteed contract).

Still, the team appears to be the front runner for Cook when the running back is cut by the Vikings tomorrow. The Dolphins discussed Cook with the Vikings in March, and the team was listed as a potential landing spot last week. We heard earlier today that the veteran RB was “very much intrigued” by playing for his hometown team, so it might not take long for a deal to come to fruition. Earlier today, the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson tweeted that Cook’s next deal probably won’t come close to the $10.4MM he was set to earn in Minnesota, but we can assume that the Pro Bowler will still require a heftier contract than what’s owed to Swift in 2023.

Dolphins Remain On Dalvin Cook Radar

June 2nd, 2023 at 10:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

The one team known to have discussed a trade with the Vikings for Dalvin Cook is not believed to be out of the running for the Pro Bowl back. The Dolphins remain interested in bringing the veteran back to South Florida.

No trade is in place between the teams, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, but it is expected the Dolphins will have interest if the Vikings move on via release. A South Florida native who played at Florida State, Cook, 27, is also expected to view Miami as an appealing destination were he to be cut, Jackson adds.

Cook is tied to a five-year, $63MM extension — agreed to just before the 2020 season, during Rick Spielman‘s lengthy tenure as the Vikings’ front office boss — that calls for a $10.4MM 2023 base salary and a $14.1MM cap hit. Both figures are in the top four at running back this year. The Dolphins, understandably, would not be expected to give Cook a salary close to that number, Jackson adds.

Trade talks between the Vikings and Dolphins commenced in March, but with no deal coming to pass, Miami made a steady effort to establish backfield continuity. Ex-Mike McDaniel 49ers charges Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson re-signed, as did Myles Gaskin. Even after those signings, Cook stayed on Miami’s radar. But, after spending extensive time with Texas A&M prospect Devon Achane, the Dolphins drafted him in the third round. Miami did not spend much to retain Mostert and Wilson, signing them both to two-year deals that contain less than $3MM guaranteed apiece. Gaskin did not receive any guaranteed money.

Despite adding Wilson at the trade deadline, the Dolphins ranked 25th in rushing last season. Cook would undoubtedly upgrade Miami’s backfield — for 2023, at least — while giving the Dolphins a much deeper position group compared to the Vikings. Minnesota appears prepared to go with longtime Cook backup Alexander Mattison as its starter. That might represent a downgrade in terms of peak production, but it would come at a steep discount as well. Mattison signed a two-year, $7MM deal that is nearly fully guaranteed.

Just $2MM of Cook’s salary is locked in for this year, but since the former second-round pick is a vested veteran, the entire $10.4MM would become the Vikings’ responsibility if he is on their roster come Week 1. With that unlikely to happen, the question will be whether the Vikings move on via trade or release. (Cook agreeing to a pay cut and likely a role reduction to stay in Minnesota is not entirely off the table, either.) With the Dolphins seemingly the lead suitor, it would make sense for the team to wait for a release and pursue the seventh-year veteran in free agency.

With Tua Tagovailoa and Jaylen Waddle still tied to rookie-deal salaries, Cook could fit in as a 2023 Dolphins hired gun. Tagovailoa’s pay spikes in 2024, thanks to the fifth-year option the Dolphins quickly exercised this offseason, and the team has Tyreek Hill tied to a receiver-record contract. For now, Hill’s $30MM-per-year deal is the only notable expense at the QB or skill spots in Miami. Though, Cedrick Wilson‘s $8MM-per-year contract remains on the books. The Dolphins are believed to be open to trading the ex-Cowboy, however. The team separated from 2022 franchise tag recipient Mike Gesicki in March.

Cook, who has four 1,100-yard rushing seasons on his resume, would be an interesting addition for one of the many contenders in a loaded AFC. For now, the Dolphins look to be interested observers in the Vikings’ decision-making at running back.

Vikings Likely To Move On From Dalvin Cook

June 2nd, 2023 at 2:54pm CST by Sam Robinson

More than three months have passed since Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah stopped short of guaranteeing Dalvin Cook would be back with the team for a seventh season. The Pro Bowl running back remains on Minnesota’s roster, but it does not look like that will be the case for too much longer.

As they did with Za’Darius Smith, the Vikings are hoping to collect an asset for Cook. Smith stood in limbo alongside Cook for several weeks, but the Vikings ended that uncertain period by dealing the edge rusher to the Browns in a pick-swap deal that brought back only 2024 and 2025 fifth-round picks. A Cook trade package likely would not bring too much back to Minnesota, if the short-lived Austin Ekeler trade market is any indication, but the Vikings still look to be pursuing that effort.

Be it via trade or release, ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert notes the Vikings are likely set to close the book on what has been a successful Cook partnership. Minnesota agreed to terms with longtime backup Alexander Mattison in March. While the fifth-year running back’s deal is quite modest — two years, $7MM, even less than the Broncos are paying Samaje Perine — the Vikes guaranteed the long-running RB2 $6.35MM. With a Justin Jefferson contract in the cards, potentially by Week 1, Minnesota authorizing this guarantee for Mattison and keeping Cook’s $12.6MM-per-year extension on the books might be a bridge too far. After his signing, Mattison said he did so with an “understanding how it’s all laid out and how it’s all going to work out.”

That said, Seifert adds the Vikings have been in talks with Cook on a pay cut ahead of his age-28 season. This would also seemingly be contingent on a role reduction. Adofo-Mensah said in April the Vikings could “in theory” run back the Cook-Mattison pair, but they have not previously formed much of a committee. Mattison has generally served as a fill-in for Cook when he misses time. The former third-round pick has not offered the ceiling Cook provides, but he has also served as one of the game’s best backups. Mattison, 25 in June, is also three years younger than Cook and has 474 career touches. Cook, who is coming off shoulder surgery, has accumulated 1,503 in six seasons as Minnesota’s starter.

As we are now past June 1, it will cost the Vikings less to move on. They can trade Cook and pick up $11MM or release him and gain $9MM. The trade scenario, however, will be tough to complete due to Cook’s $10.4MM base salary. That figure sits as the third-highest among backs this year. Another team would likely ask the Vikings to pick up some of Cook’s salary. This scenario fetched the Broncos (Von Miller) and Bears (Robert Quinn) better draft capital in deals, but it is unknown how willing Adofo-Mensah is to follow this path. Another team could also acquire Cook and restructure his through-2025 contract, but absent a robust trade market, a suitor could bet on the Vikes cutting him. The team holds just more than $9.7MM in cap space.

The Dolphins are the only team to be connected to Cook via trade, and while they picked up the most money on a post-June 1 cut (Byron Jones) this year, Miami still drafted Devon Achane in Round 3 after re-signing Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson and Myles Gaskin. Still, Cook is a South Florida native who would upgrade the Dolphins’ 2023 backfield.

As for the Vikings, they used a seventh-round pick on running back DeWayne McBride and still roster 2022 fifth-rounder Ty Chandler and 2021 fourth-rounder Kene Nwangwu. Cook could soon be an interesting domino as aspiring contenders assemble their rosters. While the door is not entirely closed on Cook staying in Minnesota, a divorce is likely coming.

Latest On Vikings, Dalvin Cook

May 10th, 2023 at 6:00pm CST by Sam Robinson

Mentioned as both a trade and release candidate this offseason, Dalvin Cook remains with the Vikings. But the parties continue to sort through the Pro Bowl running back’s contract situation.

No resolution has emerged, but second-year Minnesota HC Kevin O’Connell would prefer Cook remain with the team. That remains up in the air, however.

“They’re still, you know, working through some things, and I’m sure we’ll come to a great resolution,” O’Connell said, via Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. “And if that means Dalvin Cook is still playing running back for the Vikings, that’s something that will be a really good thing for me as the head coach and play-caller.

“… I tend to let [GM] Kwesi [Adofo-Mensah] and [executive VP of football operations] Rob [Brzezinski] work through things, you know, contractually or whatever may be there. I can just tell you what Dalvin meant to me, not only in year one as one of our core leaders of our team, but also just the impact he had on the field.”

O’Connell’s support stands to matter to a degree regarding the Vikings’ plans with Cook, who recently passed Chuck Foreman to move into third place (behind Adrian Peterson and Robert Smith) on the franchise’s all-time rushing list. But the Vikings do not appear prepared to carry Cook’s $10.4MM base salary (and $14.1MM cap number) into this coming season. Only $2MM of Cook’s salary is guaranteed, giving the Vikings some wiggle room in the coming weeks.

Minnesota re-signed longtime Cook backup Alexander Mattison and engaged briefly with Miami in trade talks, but the Dolphins have brought back both Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson and drafted Devon Achane in Round 3. That would seemingly take Miami off the table as a Cook destination. Few teams are in the market for backs, as the brief Austin Ekeler trade rumors showed, and the Vikings and Cook would need to agree to a resolution that reduces the seventh-year back’s base salary before moving forward in a trade. The Vikings are believed to have told teams they do not need to shed Cook’s salary in a trade, but seeing as they sit 31st in cap space ($1.1MM), moves will need to be made to sign draft picks.

Adofo-Mensah has not guaranteed Cook will be back but said he and Mattison can coexist for a fifth season. The 2017 running back class produced several extensions, but the past year has introduced some hurdles. Cook is on similar terrain as the Bengals’ Joe Mixon, who looms as a pay-cut candidate. The Packers restructured Aaron Jones‘ deal this offseason, while the Panthers traded Christian McCaffrey‘s $16MM-per-year contract to the 49ers. The Saints have repeatedly gone to the restructure well with Alvin Kamara, but the versatile back remains tied to a $15MM-AAV accord. Ditto Ekeler, a 2017 UDFA who is in the final year of a below-market contract. The Vikes have never restructured Cook’s $12.6MM-per-year deal. Doing so would reduce his 2023 cap hit but make a future departure more difficult.

Should the Vikings trade Cook after June 1, it would save them $11MM. They are in a similar boat with Za’Darius Smith, who sought a release earlier this year. As OTAs near, both players are in limbo.

NFC North Notes: Vikings, Lions, Savage

May 3rd, 2023 at 3:07pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Vikings have multiple departure candidates still on their roster. The Dalvin Cook–Za’Darius Smith holding patterns may persist, with SI.com’s Albert Breer noting the Vikes have informed other teams they are in good enough shape cap-wise to hold onto both veterans. This will be contingent on a bit more work being done, as OverTheCap credits the Vikings as holding $1.2MM in cap space. Cook is due $10.4MM in salary, and the Dolphins’ Devon Achane third-round pick complicates a previously discussed trade. The Vikings could take a Bengals path and prepare for a pay-cut ask, but we have not heard that is in the works yet. Smith, who asked to be cut earlier this year, is tied to a $9.45MM base. The Vikes have he, Danielle Hunter and UFA addition Marcus Davenport in the fold. The Vikings remain open to moving either player, though Breer adds they might need to pick up part of each’s salary — similar to how the Bears proceeded with their Robert Quinn trade last year — to make such a move worthwhile in terms of compensation.

Here is the latest from the NFC North:

Between free agency and the draft, the Lions have revamped their secondary. Detroit signed Cameron Sutton, Emmanuel Moseley and C.J. Gardner-Johnson before drafting versatile DB Brian Branch in Round 2. The Eagles had moved Gardner-Johnson to safety last season, but he primarily played slot corner under Aaron Glenn in New Orleans. The Lions DC is planning to use CJGJ frequently in the slot this season, Justin Rogers of the Detroit News notes. It will be interesting to see how the Lions manage the workloads for Gardner-Johnson and Branch, considering both have experience — albeit one of them at the college level only — of working in the slot and as a safety.
In the wake of the NFL’s gambling investigation producing four Lions suspensions, the team released recently re-signed special-teamer C.J. Moore and wideout Quintez Cephus. Those two were not the only Lions employees dismissed as part of their involvement in this scandal. The team also fired staffers, and Breer adds a strength and conditioning coach and two equipment managers were let go. Receivers Jameson Williams and Stanley Berryhill were also suspended, but they are still with the team.
The Packers moved some money around in Darnell Savage‘s contract recently, and Field Yates of ESPN.com indicates the restructure created $5.5MM in cap space (Twitter link). Savage is attached to a fifth-year option salary in 2023. The Packers converted $4MM of Savage’s option salary into a signing bonus and tacked on four void years to the former first-round safety’s deal, ESPN’s Rob Demovsky tweets. If the Packers do not re-sign Savage before the 2024 league year begins, they will be hit with $5.5MM in dead money due to the void years now on this contract. The Packers, who absorbed a record-tying $40MM in dead money by trading Aaron Rodgers last week, are still near the top of the league in cap space. They hold just more than $17MM in room as May begins.

Vikings Open To Trading Dalvin Cook, Za’Darius Smith

April 29th, 2023 at 6:16pm CST by Adam La Rose

The post-draft period will no doubt see a number of NFL veterans finding new homes, on the free agent and trade markets. The Vikings will be a team to watch with respect to the futures of key contributors on both sides of the ball.

Minnesota will listen to trade offers on running back Dalvin Cook and edge rusher Za’Darius Smith, as noted (on Twitter) by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. Both players have been mentioned in trade talk, leading to speculation that they could be on the move this offseason in the event their respective financial situations could be sorted out.

Cook emerged on other teams’ radars when general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah came short of guaranteeing he would be in the Vikings’ plans for 2023. The Dolphins emerged as a potential landing spot for the Miami native, though they have re-signed all four running backs they had last season in free agency and added a rookie (Devon Achane) at the position as well.

Adofo-Mensah recently left the door open to both Cook and backup Alexander Mattison staying together next season, but the latter could provide a cost-effective replacement option for Cook if he were to be dealt. The Vikings have also added DeWayne McBride in the seventh round of this year’s draft, giving the team added depth in the backfield.

Cook, 27, only has guaranteed money on his deal in 2023, but is set to carry cap figures between $14.1MM and $15.6MM in each of the next three seasons. As Breer notes, a re-worked contract would be needed to lower those figures and make a trade possible. Trading the four-time Pro Bowler would yield considerable cap savings both before or after June 1.

Dealing Smith after that date would also result in notable breathing space for the Vikings. The 30-year-old made it clear last month that he wanted to be released, a development which was understandably met by the team with a response indicating they would not grant that request. Smith appeared to have a deal in place to return to the Ravens last offseason, but he backed out of it to sign a three-year pact in Minnesota instead.

If he were to agree to a re-worked contract, Smith could generate trade a market for his services given his continued production (including 10 sacks last season and a third career Pro Bowl nod). Minnesota did not draft any edge rushers this weekend, which could give them added reason to keep Smith. They will entertain offers, though, which could result in a notable move or two in the near future.

Load More Posts