Getty Free agent running back Dalvin Cook at the 2023 NFL Pro Bowl Games.
Free agent running back Dalvin Cook visited New York Jets training camp on July 30, but there has been no news on a potential signing since then.
ESPN NFL insider Dianna Russini did provide an update on August 3, however, as she joined the Pat McAfee Show to discuss several topics including Cook.
“I’m not sure if Dalvin Cook and the Jets are on the same page on his role..
As of two days ago the Jets feel good that Breece Hall will be ready for week one”
“I think this team is very certain about their identity and who they want playing which roles, and Breece Hall is their guy [at running back],” Russini told McAfee and his panel of co-hosts.
“Would it be nice to have the insurance of a Dalvin Cook type player on this roster while Breece can slowly get back into getting to 100 percent knowing that he’s coming off this ACL? Yeah, of course,” she went on. “But if you’re a player like Dalvin Cook and you’re playing at the level he’s playing at, at his age, healthier than he’s ever been according to him, you want to be the feature back, you want to be the main guy.”
“I’m not sure if both sides are really on the same page with [Cook’s] role,” Russini concluded. She also confirmed that the Jets told her that they still expect Hall to be ready for Week 1.
Dalvin Cook’s Trainer Deletes Curious Post About Jets Visit
There has been a lot of mystery surrounding Cook’s visit with the Jets and whether or not he has any serious intention of signing with the franchise. Part of that is due to his personal trainer’s deleted post that came shortly after the Florham Park appearance.
Athletic Agency Analysis shared a screenshot of the comment from Nick Hicks of “PER4ORM” on Twitter’s newly branded platform, X. It read: “If Jets fans knew what DC said today in training they’d be 💔 [heartbroken] 😂.”
Here’s a deleted tweet from Dalvin Cook’s trainer this morning @PER4ORM – just as the media wanted to guarantee his signing with New York, Miami again seems like where Cook will end up.
Later, Hicks — a self-proclaimed Miami Dolphins fan — changed his tune.
“I commented earlier [that I was] just messing around getting @JetsAGNB riled up about DC and now I’m in the doghouse. Thanks @bubbagumpino lol.”
“JetsAGNB” is a diehard Jets fan on X, while “bubbagumpino” is Gump Cathcart — a member of the Pat McAfee Show.
In other words, after likely hearing from Cook or his camp and getting thrown into the metaphorical “doghouse,” Hicks refuted his initial post. His cover was that he was just messing with Jets fans, namely the X account “JetsAGNB.”
It’s up to you whether or not you believe that.
Why Would Dalvin Cook Visit the Jets With No Intention of Signing?
You might be asking yourself, why visit the Jets if you don’t want to play there? Well, that’s simple. The answer, as always, is money.
Cook is trying to raise his market value and visiting with rival franchises typically increases the likelihood that another team will pay more. In this scenario, that’s not a known fact, but it was a theory of ex-NFL quarterback and WFAN NYC radio host Boomer Esiason on July 10.
During an episode of “Boomer & Gio,” Esiason stated that “I know exactly what’s going on.”
“So, Dalvin Cook has a $7 million a year contract from the Minnesota Vikings right now,” he continued. “I don’t want to put words into his mouth, but he hasn’t accepted it and I don’t think he really wants to go back there. I think that he really wants to play for the Miami Dolphins, and I believe that [his agent] is trying to play the Dolphins off the Jets just like [Drew Rosenhaus] did with Tyreek Hill.”
“Tyreek Hill was never coming to the Jets, we all know that,” Esiason explained. “He was going to go to Miami, and just to get the money up, you get these agents like Drew Rosenhaus trying to do the best that they possibly can for their clients.”
Again, this is just a theory, not fact. However, it would jive with the narrative that Cook isn’t content with his potential NYJ role, and Hicks wasn’t just messing with Jets fans when he leaked information about the RB’s visit to Florham Park.