Sansevere: Chuck Foreman loves Dalvin Cook’s game
Bob Sansevere
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Legendary Vikings running back Chuck Foreman considers Dalvin Cook the kind of all-around back he once was.
“He reminds me of me the most of any Vikings back,” Foreman said in an interview with the St. Paul Pioneer Press I conducted. “He can run, he can catch and, to be quite honest with you, they’ve had some really exceptional players. Don’t misunderstand me, but he’s the only guy that’s been with the Vikings that I actually turn my TV on to watch on Sunday and can’t wait to see what he does.”
High praise from a back who is in the Vikings’ Ring of Honor and belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“His skill set is so (impressive). I mean, you look at him run, but if you watch him when he’s not running, he’s picking up the blitzes, he’s coming out on the passes,” Foreman told the newspaper. “He can do all the things you need to do to be an exceptional back. And now, don’t misunderstand what I’m saying: You can have all the yards you want, but that doesn’t mean you’re a great runner.
That doesn’t mean you’re the best because it depends on: Are you in the game at crucial times? And, when you are in the game at crucial times, do you make the plays that you need to make? And, that’s when I look at him and I say, “Yeah, he does.”
In an era when many teams either use a back-by-committee approach or have a third-down specialist, Cook’s vast skill set allows him to do it all.
“He’s a three down back. And that’s what separates the great ones because they’re there every play,” Foreman said. “I’m not taking anything away from those guys who play on first and second down, but you’ve got to be able to catch the ball and pick up the blitzes. You’ve got to be able to block on the run plays.
All those different things that you’ve got to do. That’s how I evaluate running backs. I look at more than just the yards you get. There are garbage yards. And, then there’s game-changing yards. Game-changing plays and things like that. That’s what I look at when I evaluate somebody. I don’t look at well, the guy got a bunch of yards. I mean, where did the team go?
“Like Dalvin Cook, for instance. Where does he take the team? When he’s in the game, the Vikings are a totally different offensive team.”
Last season, despite missing two games, Cook ran for 1557 yards and 16 touchdowns and also caught 44 passes with a touchdown. He had 1,918 combined yards.
“I think he can do anything he wants to do,” Foreman said. “Dalvin’s got that unique ability that he goes from zero to warp speed pretty quick. I’m serious. He takes one or two steps and he can be at top speed. Yeah. He’s gone. You don’t teach that. I think we’ve had a lot of really good ones. No question about it. No doubt. But that’s the one that I turn my TV on to watch every week.”
In the same interview with the Pioneer Press where he applauded Cook, Foreman also skewered Vikings players who refuse to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
“In my opinion, unvaccinated players are being unreasonable and selfish,” Foreman said. “It’s my opinion, but I wouldn’t get in the huddle with Cousins. The guy’s not vaccinated. So, I think it would be a problem for me, personally.”
(Bob Sansevere hosts the daily podcast “The BS Show” that also is broadcast on radio stations in Duluth (WDSM), Hibbing (WNMT), St. Cloud (WBHR) and Worthington (the RadioWorks Network). He also co-hosts the weekly JimBob Sports Jamboree with Vikings legend Chuck Foreman and Fox 9’s Jim Rich; that show can be heard on about a dozen radio stations across Minnesota. And he will be returning to the KQ Morning Show, where he spent more than 30 years, to give weekly Vikings updates.)