Source: Cook to join Jets backfield on 1-year deal

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Free agent running back Dalvin Cook is planning to sign a one-year deal worth up to $8.6 million with the New York Jets, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Monday night.

Cook was released on June 8 after four straight Pro Bowl seasons with the Minnesota Vikings.

The move gives Aaron Rodgers another proven playmaker and comes after the veteran quarterback volunteered to take a $35 million pay cut, creating financial flexibility to sign big-ticket players such as Cook.

With No. 1 back Breece Hall returning from ACL surgery, the Jets wanted to bolster their backfield with an accomplished runner. They maintained steady interest in Cook, with coach Robert Saleh saying recently, “Obviously, you don’t want to say no to a great player.”

Cook visited the Jets last months, spending almost a full day at their facility. The Jets have said they’re optimistic about Hall’s availability for Week 1, but he’s still on the PUP list and time is running out. Saleh professed his faith in backups Zonovan Knight and Michael Carter, but they both averaged 3.5 yards per rush last season, ranking 58th and 59th among 59 players with at least 80 attempts, respectively.

They also have rookie Israel Abanikanda, a fifth-round pick from Pitt.

Cook is another high-profile asset for the Jets, who revamped their traditionally moribund offense by trading for Rodgers, signing wide receivers Allen Lazard and Mecole Hardman and changing coordinators.

In Cook they get one of the most prolific runners in the league. Since 2019, he has averaged 111 scrimmage yards per game, second to the Tennessee Titans’ Derrick Henry (126). Cook has a one-cut style that should fit nicely in the Jets’ outside zone running scheme. The Jets, who haven’t had a 1,000-yard rusher since 2015, get a back with four straight 1,000-yard seasons.

“He’s been a dynamic ball-carrier for a long time,” Saleh said.

But he arrives with some question marks, on and off the field. Having battled chronic shoulder injuries since college, Cook underwent surgery Feb. 14. He’s also coming off his least efficient season. Cook, who turns 28 on Aug. 10, is expected to be ready for the season, a source said.

Despite a separated shoulder last season, he played every game. While Cook rushed for 1,173 yards in 2022, his per-carry average was a career-low 4.4. He led the NFL with 62 carries for a loss or no gain and only 34.5% of his carries gained a positive total of yards over expectation, per Next Gen Stats, the second-lowest rate among running backs with at least 200 carries in 2022.

In 2021, a former girlfriend filed a lawsuit against him, alleging physical and emotional abuse. He then filed a defamation suit against her. Both cases are pending. The Star-Tribune reported last week that he offered her $1 million to clear him of wrongdoing despite her previously sworn abuse allegations against him.

Saleh, commenting on his sit-down with Cook, called him “a very good young man. He has a plan, he knows exactly what he wants and it was a really good discussion.”