Vikings RB Cook on mend from knee injury

Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook, who sustained a severe knee injury early in the 2017 season, is on schedule to return to the field in 2018.

Cook, a second-round pick in the 2017 draft, rushed for 354 yards on 74 carries (a 4.8-yard average) and scored two touchdowns in three-plus games in his rookie season.

However, he suffered a torn ACL in Week 4 and missed the rest of the season.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman told the Pioneer Press on Thursday that Cook's recovery could lead to the kind of success that former Vikings running back Adrian Peterson had when returned to action in 2012 following an ACL injury.

Peterson rushed for 2,097 yards in 2012 and was named the league's MVP.

"He's progressed very nicely," Spielman said of Cook. "I talked to (director of sports medicine/head athletic trainer) Eric Sugarman yesterday when we got back in town, and we don't see any reason where he's not going to be where Adrian Peterson was when he came off his knee (injury).

"We have no reason to believe Dalvin won't even be stronger than he was before the injury. We're very excited about getting him back on the field."