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RB Dalvin Cook, BAL (2 Viewers)

Tape vs measurables- tape shows fumbling every 63 carries, but no tape on his off field issues. Measurables outside of 40 time are disappointing, maybe his lack of lateral explosiveness is due to his weak knees. When I look at all of this cumulatively between stupid decisions off the field, knee issues, apparently straight line speed but no lateral explosiveness, it's just too much for me to be on this guys bandwagon. 
He's had knee injuries?  I wasn't aware of that.  What were the issues?

 
Tape vs measurables- tape shows fumbling every 63 carries, but no tape on his off field issues. Measurables outside of 40 time are disappointing, maybe his lack of lateral explosiveness is due to his weak knees. When I look at all of this cumulatively between stupid decisions off the field, knee issues, apparently straight line speed but no lateral explosiveness, it's just too much for me to be on this guys bandwagon. 
I don't really care about the fumbles in fantasy. Doubt it keeps him on the bench if he is a round 1 pick. But to me Cook is a classic case of watch the games vs. watch the combine. I don't care WTF he tests at in whatever speed test, the dude is fast on the field. I'll be very happy to take him as 1.2 if he ends up on the Packers, Colts or Bucs.

 
The poor combine matters imo.  After rewatching Cook, I come away with the impression of the dreaded space runner. I have certainly downgraded him as I think situation is going to play a big role in whether he is successful.

 
The poor combine matters imo.  After rewatching Cook, I come away with the impression of the dreaded space runner. I have certainly downgraded him as I think situation is going to play a big role in whether he is successful.
Perception I guess. When I watch him I see someone who creates space with vision and patience. He finds the holes and then makes the proper decision to exploit them. 

 
Grahamburn said:
Perception I guess. When I watch him I see someone who creates space with vision and patience. He finds the holes and then makes the proper decision to exploit them. 
Agree. I put a lot more stock in what I saw of him in actual games than I do in watching him run around cones in his shorts. 

 
Running back Dalvin Cook ran the 40-yard dash again after a disappointing 4.49 time at the combine. The numbers posted varied, but scouts I spoke to clocked him in the low 4.5s on his first run and mid 4.4s on his second. The same scout remarked that Cook's drill work was "f--king special" and that his ability as a receiver out of the backfield makes him a first-round talent on the field.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2700859-matt-millers-scouting-notebook-top-5-coming-into-focus-new-big-board-more

 
Us Pro-Dalvin's only care about his on the field pedigree. He's the most dynamic back to ever come out of FSU and that's what we're hanging our hat on!

Tex

 
MATT MILLER'S SCOUTING NOTEBOOK: TOP 5 COMING INTO FOCUS, NEW BIG BOARD & MORE

Excerpt:

Florida State pro day recap

—Running back Dalvin Cook ran the 40-yard dash again after a disappointing 4.49 time at the combine. The numbers posted varied, but scouts I spoke to clocked him in the low 4.5s on his first run and mid 4.4s on his second. The same scout remarked that Cook's drill work was "f--king special" and that his ability as a receiver out of the backfield makes him a first-round talent on the field.
 
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Us Pro-Dalvin's only care about his on the field pedigree. He's the most dynamic back to ever come out of FSU and that's what we're hanging our hat on!

Tex
When I watch him I see similarities to Clinton Portis and Terry Allen, who for me are prototypes of the kind of RB I like to watch, the all purpose slasher style of RB who can make defenders miss and has good vision, footwork and timing to find the open space, runs inside to outside, gets what is blocked and can also create on his own. Shows good paitence pressing the hole and good change of direction ability and acceleration (despite what his times say)

I think this is the kind of RB who is successful in the NFL and fantasy. In my opinion he is more of a foundation RB for todays NFL than what Greg Cosell thinks is one ( a 2 down grinder).

He isn't as good a blocker as Portis became, not even close, but it took time before Portis developed that ability as well.

On that note I decided to look up what Clinton Portis combine numbers were. There wasn't any.

The rest of this post is about combine data, so please disregard if you do not care about it.

I was going through top drafted RB and looking at which ones didn't have any combine or pro day data. I found that most of these highly drafted RB did have at least some combine or pro day data, although some may be missing a drill or a few drills. A drill that a lot of the RB skip is the 3 cone and shuttle drills. Which makes me wonder if NFL teams consider those drills to be relevant to their evaluation of players for the RB position?

Some examples of top RB who did not do the 3 cone drill are, Reggie Bush, Laurence Maroney, Trent Richardson, Todd Gurley, Larry Johnson. but most of them have.

To be honest the NFL teams seem more interested in the broad jump for RB than the 3 cone or shuttle times. I was reading that there was more of a connection with good broad jump numbers and being drafted higher at the RB position.

It  makes sense that the NFL may find this metric useful, as the broad jump should give an indication of leg drive and acceleration or explosiveness the player can generate with one move.

The problem with the broad jump data is that there doesn't seem to be a connection between that drill and how RB have actually performed in the NFL. So if that is the case, then why are teams drafting RB in part based on the jump times that do not lead to results?

At least there is a weak connection between the 3 cone drill and actual performance, as measured by approximate value. There isn't any between broad jump and actual performance. So why do teams care about that? :shrug:

Anyhow pro football reference does have combine data from 2000-2017 and when I than query by 3 cone time greater than 7 seconds and RB less than 220lbs I get this list and Davlin Cook has the worst 3 cone time of any of these RB. I can't help it, that bothers me.

 
Us Pro-Dalvin's only care about his on the field pedigree. He's the most dynamic back to ever come out of FSU and that's what we're hanging our hat on!

Tex
What? You don't care how fast he ran around some cones in his shorts!? Blasphemy!

 
What? You don't care how fast he ran around some cones in his shorts!? Blasphemy!
I really would have liked to see him try to better his other drills, but what really scares me off is his knuckleheadedness. If that is even a word. Some guys are stars and are big man on campus and maybe rest on their laurels a bit or get caught up chasing ladies all the time, enjoying being young and popular and soon to be rich. Some guys play with a chip on their shoulder or love the game and live/eat/breathe it, some guys work out like theyre addicts, some not. It seems like Cook should have been able to show better than what he did, so did he prepare? He looks good on film, but is he going to put in max effort? Or is he going to be a guy we hear a year or two from now getting into a fight outside a club at fsu? Id be asking his teammates what kind of worker he is. I thought Cam Newton was a guy that came in with a lot of success and a glitzy attitude (my impression) and but proceeded to work hard to prove his doubters wrong. Will Cook do that? I think mixon has for the last few years and now has to do it again, and we can all agree mccaffery is the eat/sleep football guy. 

Lets say you're trying to get a scholarship based partially on your act score, and it's public. Everyone expects you to score in the 30s, but you get a 19 but crush the math portion. So you retake the math portion and score the same? I would want to show everyone that I can read too, and would study my butt off for that month before I retest. I don't get why Cook wouldn't try to show better 3cone/broad, even if he scored the same I don't think it would do further damage. I suppose there is the risk of inury. Rambling on.....

 
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I really would have liked to see him try to better his other drills, but what really scares me off is his knuckleheadedness. If that is even a word. Some guys are stars and are big man on campus and maybe rest on their laurels a bit or get caught up chasing ladies all the time, enjoying being young and popular and soon to be rich. Some guys play with a chip on their shoulder or love the game and live/eat/breathe it, some guys work out like theyre addicts, some not. It seems like Cook should have been able to show better than what he did, so did he prepare? He looks good on film, but is he going to put in max effort? Or is he going to be a guy we hear a year or two from now getting into a fight outside a club at fsu? Id be asking his teammates what kind of worker he is. I thought Cam Newton was a guy that came in with a lot of success and a glitzy attitude (my impression) and but proceeded to work hard to prove his doubters wrong. Will Cook do that? I think mixon has for the last few years and now has to do it again, and we can all agree mccaffery is the eat/sleep football guy. 

Lets say you're trying to get a scholarship based partially on your act score, and it's public. Everyone expects you to score in the 30s, but you get a 19 but crush the math portion. So you retake the math portion and score the same? I would want to show everyone that I can read too, and would study my butt off for that month before I retest. I don't get why Cook wouldn't try to show better 3cone/broad, even if he scored the same I don't think it would do further damage. I suppose there is the risk of inury. Rambling on.....
I agree the off field stuff worries me way more than Cook's talent

 
The Browns are hosting FSU RB Dalvin Cook for a visit on Monday.

Cook has turned into one of the more interesting evaluations of any prospect in this class. On the field, we see the class' best running back. Off of it, he comes with a myriad of concerns. Not only that, but Cook is injury-prone and apt to fumble. Oh, and he tested as poorly as any top running back prospect over the past few years at the NFL Combine. NFL Media's Chad Reuter slotted him to the Chiefs at No. 27 in a mock draft published Monday.

 
 
Source: Ian Rapoport on Twitter 
Apr 3 - 1:16 PM
 
If they keep 1.1, get the QB they want at 1.12 and then Cook at 2.1 everyone will be falling all over the Analytics Guys.

And yet the Browns will still go 5-11.

:)

 
The MMQB's Emily Kaplan spoke with one NFL scout who combined his grades over the last four years and ranked FSU RB Dalvin Cook higher than first-round pick Todd Gurley.

This is significant, but also important to note that it is one scout's opinion and might not even reflect his team's final grade and especially not the entire league. Cook carried FSU's offense for two seasons and produced a number of big plays. However, none of us expect him to be a top 10 pick like Gurley.

 
 
Source: The MMQB 
Apr 4 - 11:27 AM
 
The 49ers hosted FSU RB Dalvin Cook for an official visit on Wednesday.
The 49ers aren't going to pick Cook No. 2 overall, but they are doing their due diligence in case he plummets to the end of Rd. 1 or the top of Rd. 2. Cook would be a grand slam pick at No. 34 overall, which is where San Francisco comes back up in the second stanza. Cook's darting, cutting and elusiveness running style would be an ideal fit in new HC Kyle Shanahan's zone scheme, and his plus-receiving ability would be a boon for whichever quarterback the 49ers throw out their next season. If Cook falls, it will be because of poor Combine testing, fumbles, injuries, character concerns and his issues in pass protection.
 
Source: CSN Bay Area

 
The Bengals are hosting FSU RB Dalvin Cook for a pre-draft visit on Friday, according to ESPN's Katherine Terrell.

The Bengals are likely to target a running back in the second round of the draft, with Alvin Kamara and Joe Mixon acting as possible prospects in that area. Add Cook to the list. Rex Burkhead, arguably the team's top running back, departed in free agency and the Bengals are left with inconsistent Jeremy Hill and Gio Bernard, who is working back from injury.

 
 
Source: Katherine Terrell on Twitter 
Apr 7 - 7:08 AM
 
SEC Network's Booger McFarland is hearing FSU RB Dalvin Cook being drafted by the Bucs is something both sides want.

McFarland has connections to the Bucs after playing with the team from 1999-2006, and the Bucs have been linked to a running back in the first round after Doug Martin's issues staying on the field. Zach Whitman and Rotoworld's Josh Norris has brought up that a running back with Cook's athletic profile has not been selected in round one in 15-plus years, but it only takes one team. Cook is a dynamic player on the field.

 
 
Source: Booger McFarland on Twitter 
Apr 13 - 8:24 AM
 
An NFL scout speaking to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel said that FSU RB Dalvin Cook is "pound for pound ... the best all-around back I’ve ever done."

Another scout quoted compared Cook to Devonta Freeman. "I absolutely love that guy," he said. "He can take over a game. What makes him special is his first 10 yards. His acceleration rate is awesome. Good enough hands. People will try to kill his character, and to a degree he may slide." To that point, the Journal-Sentinel reported that "several scouts" they spoke with "expressed major reservations about Cook's checkered past involving arrests for various incidents dating to high school." With three shoulder operations in his past, health is also a concern, as is Cook's lackluster athletic testing numbers. "He’s a small back," said another scout. "Ran 4.5, 30-inch vertical. Where’s the explosive dynamic? And he has questionable makeup."

 
 
Source: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel 
Apr 20 - 1:53 PM
 
"He’s a small back," said another scout. "Ran 4.5, 30-inch vertical. Where’s the explosive dynamic?
You mean the explosive dynamic of Cook on the football field?

I really do not need an anonymous scout to regurgitate the combine measurements. Anyone could do that. What is the point of talking to a scout if all they are going to do is mention combine metrics?

 
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Eight facts for the 2017 NFL Draft

Excerpt:

Zeke-like production


Over their last two college seasons, Dalvin Cook (at FSU) and 2016 NFL rushing leader Ezekiel Elliott (at Ohio State) had almost identical statistical production. Cook gained 138.2 rushing yards per game, 6.7 yards per carry, and scored 40 scrimmage touchdowns in that span, while Elliott gained 132.1 rushing yards per game, 6.6 yards per carry, and scored 41 scrimmage touchdowns.

 
Speaking on a Friday conference call, NFL Network's Mike Mayock suggested that the Buccaneers would do well to consider FSU RB Dalvin Cook at No. 19.

"(Cook) could be staring them in the face at No. 19, and I think he should be a consideration," Mayock said, adding that "Jameis Winston had 24 turnovers last year, too many, they've got to take some pressure off of him." The Bucs are one team to seriously consider as in the running back market given the uncertainty surrounding Doug Martin (who is suspended for the first three games of the 2017 season due to a failed drug test). Durability concerns, a murky history of off-field issues and an eerily quiet Combine have Cook potentially staring at a slide to the second round, though we still think a Day 1 selection is a solid enough bet -- particularly given that if he did drop into the 20's, he would be an ideal luxury pick for a playoff outfit.

 

Source: NFL.com 
Apr 21 - 8:37 PM

 
On-field, by far my favorite RB in this class for fantasy.  Dude is a prototypical RB in the current NFL landscape.  Perfect blend of "old school" and "new school".  Fournette may be a hair on the "old school" side, McCaffrey may be just the opposite.  Cook is right down the middle.  Can do it all.

The durability concerns are the question marks for me.  I'm not fazed by the "off-field issues".  

Can't wait to see who picks him up.  

 
On-field, by far my favorite RB in this class for fantasy.  Dude is a prototypical RB in the current NFL landscape.  Perfect blend of "old school" and "new school".  Fournette may be a hair on the "old school" side, McCaffrey may be just the opposite.  Cook is right down the middle.  Can do it all.

The durability concerns are the question marks for me.  I'm not fazed by the "off-field issues".  

Can't wait to see who picks him up.  
not great at pass protection. However it is just a technique and awareness issue and not a toughness issue so that is something that can be worked on.

fumbling is a problem though.

 
Before the combine I had Cook ranked 2nd just behind McCaffrey. But then more off field stuff started to surface and his combine metrics didn't match the tape. As of now, I can't decide where to slot him. 

 
pbandy1 said:
not great at pass protection. However it is just a technique and awareness issue and not a toughness issue so that is something that can be worked on.

fumbling is a problem though.
Yeah the fumbling thing is a problem, but could also be technique.  I remember Tiki Barber couldn't go 5 minutes without fumbling and one simple fix and the guy was rock solid.

 
Lots of red flags here. Off the field issues, injury issues, fumbling problems, problems or pass protection, poor combine, probably a bit undersized. That's a lot to overcome. The fumbling and pass protection are worrisome because those are two things that commonly keep rookies off the field. 

 
I like Cook. I feel he went from overrated before, to underrated after the combine. I think the best possible fit would be Green Bay at 29, he'd add an entirely new dimension to an already amazing offense.

 
He doesn't run with much if any power and he's pretty atrocious in pass protection.  Once you start to add in the shoulder injuries, the checkered past, and the rumors he's still hanging out with a rough crowd a slide to the second round doesn't seem out of the question.  I'm hoping Tampa passes on him.

 
Which team that isn't set at RB runs the most Zone Blocking? Honest question.
Packers?  As someone said above, he'd bring a new dimension to that already potent offense.  I mean for eff's sake they had Ty Montgomery running as their RB last year and he put up some juicy fantasy stats.  

 
Any of you questioning the pass pro actually watch FSU? He stone walled quite a few blitzers over the years. The ones he missed last year always felt more like francois pointing out the wrong blitz gap. I think Cook is a plenty willing blocker, just needs a QB to put him in the correct spot. I do remember one where he just whiffed, but I don't recall much lack of effort.  

I know he's had some off the field issues at FSU but I also know everybody there speaks glowingly of him as a person, and I can assure you they don't do that for everyone. I'm hoping most of that stuff was teenage immaturity and is over with. I haven't heard anything negative since his trial two years ago (which he was acquitted for in 30 minutes). 

As for the combine stuff, that's just completely stupid to hold against him. 

 
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Any of you questioning the pass pro actually watch FSU? He stone walled quite a few blitzers over the years. The ones he missed last year always felt more like francois pointing out the wrong blitz gap. I think Cook is a plenty willing blocker, just needs a QB to put him in the correct spot. I do remember one where he just whiffed, but I don't recall much lack of effort.  

I know he's had some off the field issues at FSU but I also know everybody there speaks glowingly of him as a person, and I can assure you they don't do that for everyone. I'm hoping most of that stuff was teenage immaturity and is over with. I haven't heard anything negative since his trial two years ago (which he was acquitted for in 30 minutes). 

As for the combine stuff, that's just completely stupid to hold against him. 
You think he was hungover that day at the combine?  I mean it was worse than bad.  How many Sundays will he show equal enthusiasm? 

 
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You think he was hungover that day at the combine?  I mean it was worse than bad.  How many Sundays will he show equal enthusiasm? 
I've never actually heard of him drinking before. So I doubt it was that. I really don't know, I've never really cared about the combine when the tape is good. Not like he played in the sun belt. 

 
I've never actually heard of him drinking before. So I doubt it was that. I really don't know, I've never really cared about the combine when the tape is good. Not like he played in the sun belt. 
More than one way of getting a hangover, causing you not to perform at your best.

 
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