Height: 5-10
Weight: 210
Age: 21.6
40-Yard Dash: 4.49 (77th-percentile)
Speed Score: 103.3 (70th-percentile)
Burst Score: 109.9 (8th-percentile)
Agility Score: 11.80 (9th-percentile)
Bench: 22 reps (66th-percentile)
Best Comparable: Tevin Coleman
A three-year producer at Florida State, running back Dalvin Cook declared for the NFL Draft following his junior season. Already a highly-touted prospect prior to the NFL Scouting Combine, Cook is a touchdown scoring machine, but ball security issues, injury history and multiple police run-ins surround him heading into this year’s draft as well.
Dalvin Cook was No. 2 in the nation in yards from scrimmage in 2016, racking up 2,253 total yards, while amassing 1,765 rush yards and 488 receiving yards. He was no stranger to heavy workloads throughout his time at Florida State, as he posted a College Dominator rating of 38.8-percent, which measures a running backs total of team yards and touchdowns while in college, which falls within the 82nd-percentile among NFL running backs. College Dominator Rating for running backs calculates a receiver’s share of total team yards and touchdowns on offense.
Throughout his collegiate career, Dalvin Cook was an efficient runner who made the most of the space provided for him. He never averaged less than 5.9 yards per carry in any of his three seasons, and finished his 2015 campaign with 7.4 yards per carry while amassing 1,691 rush yards for 19 touchdowns, and 24 receptions for 244 yards and one touchdown.
Dalvin Cook Advanced Stats & Metrics Profile
Dalvin Cook’s name alone should be synonymous with touchdowns, as he racked up a total of 48 in just 38 career games, and scored 20 total touchdowns in both 2015 and 2016. Ball security was an issue for Cook throughout his career at Florida State, as he did fumble away 13 carries over his last three seasons, but his play-making ability will still draw the interest of multiple running back needy teams in this year’s draft.
Even with his impressive display on film, Dalvin Cook underwhelmed in multiple areas at the 2017 NFL Scouting Combine. The 5-foot-10, 210-pound running back did post a speedy 4.49 40-yard dash, which was to be expected, but he came up short in agility testing and burst scoring. His 11.80 Agility Score ranked in the 9th-percentile among NFL running backs, while his Burst Score of 109.9 placed him in the 8th-percentile among NFL running backs.
Dalvin Cook will also have to answer questions about his multiple run-ins with police throughout his career, dating back to his high school days when he was charged, but never prosecuted for robbery in 2009. He also saw charges dropped in 2010 for firing and possessing a weapon on school property, and was most recently arrested in 2015 for assault and battery outside of a bar, where he was found not guilty. While never convicted on any of the above-mentioned charges, the fact that he was even considered to be involved with them is alarming.
Injuries followed Dalvin Cookas well for parts of 2015 and 2016, as the running back has already dealt with multiple shoulder surgeries dating back to his high school days, and hamstring issues.
Despite an underwhelming NFL Scouting Combine performance, Dalvin Cook should still remain a top running back prospect in this year’s draft, provided that teams are convinced he is healthy and has cleaned up his history of character concerns. His tape and college production alone show multiple flashes of a dual-threat running back who is capable of reeling off one explosive play after another. Should he find himself on an NFL team with a weak running back corps, Cook could see heavy workloads early and often in 2017, and be a pre-season rookie of the year candidate.
