Blazing fast Dalvin Cook shows how irrelevant 40-yard dash times can be

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@purplefaithful said:

@mgobluevikes said:
He got chased down by a LBer who had a bad angle on his 33 yd. run. 

Actually, I thought there was no way anyone was going to catch him on that last run. I think he was getting gassed. But it's a damn fine game 1 imo. 

Clearly a tail-back for this generation of play...

Exactly what new NFL offenses need in a RB. Perfect fit for us and we are damn lucky he dropped. I am really glad we got away from the traditional RB system. I will miss Peterson but its just outdated.

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Just saying, as a rookie on that last run there's no way Peterson gets run down from behind on that last run. It's not a knock on Cook. I'll happily take a guy with a more balanced game, that shows some patience, has vision, and can consistently get 5 yds. a carry, vs. a guy who runs into the backsides of his blockers 70% of the time, and gets the occasional long gainer. Peterson was exciting at times, he won some games for us, but was also very frustrating to watch at times.

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Dalvin will be (is already?) very good.  He has more very good speed, adequate power, is a good receiver (that did not show up in game 1), has very good vision, excellent quickness / change of direction, and picks up the blitz as a rookie far better that Peterson ever has.  He may never be a hall of famer or a league MVP, but assuming he avoids injuries and off the field issues, this is one position we do not have to worry about for a few years.

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As was mentioned many times around draft time, Cook is fast in pads. It really is amazing how big a difference there is. Murray ran a faster 40 time than Cook, but I'd bet Cook smokes him in pads. Not that it matters much. I'd say quickness and acceleration are bigger factors for a back. 

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@purplefaithful said:

@mgobluevikes said:
He got chased down by a LBer who had a bad angle on his 33 yd. run. 

Actually, I thought there was no way anyone was going to catch him on that last run. I think he was getting gassed. But it's a damn fine game 1 imo. 

Clearly a tail-back for this generation of play...

The two big runs that he broke were both to the outside, so he's running like 40-45 yards to gain 30 and the extra distance/time is enough to give the D a chance to catch him. With Peterson his big runs tended to be up the middle against a stacked D, so once he got past the first level there wasn't much left to stop. I do think that Cook will break some long TDs, but the frequency that Peterson could score 60-70 yard TDs was special.