Dalvin Cook will still be on an NFL roster next season. He just won’t know where he’ll play until Friday.
The first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday saw several surprises, and one of the big ones was Cook’s omission from the opening round. As one of college football’s most explosive players, there was a belief the former Florida State star could go in the first 15 or 20 picks.
Jacksonville and Carolina were in the market for a running back but went in another direction. The Jaguars chose former LSU star Leonard Fournette with the fourth pick while former Stanford dynamo Christian McCaffrey went eighth to the Panthers.
Several mock drafts projected Cook as a mid-to-late first-round pick. One likely candidate was thought to be the Kansas City Chiefs, who initially had the 27th pick, until they were able to trade up and select former Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes II.
"Cook Watch" intensified as the draft went into the late teens. One of the teams rumored to take Cook was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who would ultimately take former Alabama tight end O.J. Howard at No. 19.
It left the list of potential suitors to the New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and the San Francisco 49ers.
The Giants selected Ole Miss tight end Evan Ingram with the 23rd pick while the Browns selected former Michigan defensive back/linebacker Jabrill Peppers at 25. The Browns traded back into the first round to get the 29th pick but would ultimately draft former Miami tight end David Njoku.
San Francisco, with the 31st pick, chose former Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster. New Orleans, which had the final pick of the first round, selected former Wisconsin offensive tackle Ryan Ramcyzk.
There’s a chance Cook could come off the board early in the second round. Both Green Bay and Seattle, which have a need at running back, could take Cook within the first two selections Friday.
Cook’s status as a first-round selection came into question in the weeks leading up to the draft.
Sports Illustrated’s Monday Morning Quarterback reported earlier in the week that red flags regarding Cook were sparked by a “runner” or street agent attempting to sabotage his draft stock. SI reported the runner allegedly told NFL teams Cook did not take his pre-draft workouts seriously in addition to having a potential drinking problem.
Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher, who was at the NFL Draft in Philadelphia, told reporters Wednesday he never had a problem with Cook.
"You know, the information out there, it's amazing the information goes in -- you can't -- to say that's out there, you don't know if it's false information in our world today, in the media, whether it's -- look at our elections," Fisher said during the Atlantic Coast Conference Spring Coaches Teleconference. "All the stuff that goes on in the elections. Look at that. You can't believe any of that stuff. You have to do your own research and your own decisions in that regard.
"Our media in that regard has gotten so crazy that it's -- anything that's said, anybody can throw something out there. Come watch the guy play, watch him practice, and he was a tremendous role model for us."
Cook, who was a five-star prospect out of Miami Central High, would establish himself as one of the greatest players in FSU's history. He rushed for a school-record 4,464 yards and 46 touchdowns over his three-year tenure.
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