Dalvin Cook is a player that many Buccaneers fans would love to get. Now, some believe he won’t even be taken in the first round.
This is the crazy part of draft season. The “news” that comes out many times is false or meant to mislead in any way possible. Now, that’s not to say that everything we here is a lie. Much of what we hear is true, but you have to take into account who the scoops are coming from and what their true intentions may be. Like the latest on Florida State running back Dalvin Cook, who the Buccaneers have serious interest in.
Matt Miller of Bleacher Report wrote the biggest questions about the top prospects of the 2017 NFL Draft and of course Cook was one of the players listed. We all are aware now of some of his off-field issues as well as a questionable shoulder that has already gone under the knife. Miller laid out these concerns, mostly the off-field issues;
"“Cook has never been found guilty of a crime, but there are multiple issues in his past that NFL teams are investigating. Cook was acquitted of a charge of misdemeanor battery in 2015, cited for a violation of animal care in 2014, charged with robbery in 2009 before the charge was dropped and in 2010 was charged with firing a weapon and possession of a weapon on school property, though at least one of those charges was dropped or abandoned. Another incident involved Cook being charged with criminal mischief for allegedly causing property damage with a BB gun.”More from Bucs DraftThe Athletic’s early NFL Mock Draft has the Bucs taking a Top 5 QB in 2024Bucs front office reveals one thing the team missed during NFL DraftPeter King explains simple reason why Bucs passed on drafting Will LevisMel Kiper Jr. hands out his official Buccaneers draft gradeTampa Bay Buccaneers undrafted free agents tracker 2023"
Here’s the part that really stuck out to me, though. An anonymous scout made a statement that was not only bold, but wildly dangerous. Now, I will preface the scout’s quote with this; again, this is the season of misleading, deception, and positioning. An anonymous scout could very well say something he knows will be published for the sole purpose of getting a player his team wants to potentially fall enough for them to draft him. That being said, this scout has a strong stance on Cook, telling Miller;
"“The pattern of bad decisions are alarming, really. With my job on the line, I trust [Joe] Mixon a lot more than Dalvin Cook.”"
Now wait a minute. Again, Cook has never been convicted of anything. Kelvin Hunt of ChopChat did a great job of breaking down Cook’s questionable past here and frankly, this seems like a lot to do about nothing.
Miller predicted Cook will now drop out of the first round completely given this information becoming more mainstream less than five weeks away from draft night.
Me? I still think there’s no chance Cook gets past the Bucs.
The only way Cook is sitting there at 19 and the Bucs pass on him is if Licht went through his vetting process – much like he did with Jameis Winston – and decides there’s more to Cook’s character than they’re willing to risk. Licht will leave no stone unturned when it comes to making sure their pick is the right one. If he passes on Cook, you have to think he found something that made him think Cook is going to be more trouble than he’s worth.
Gil Arcia of Joe Bucs Fan found out who this particular scout was and apparently the two had a past;
Know what's funny about the whole "scout told me if job on the line he trust Mixon more than Cook" report? Anybody wanna guess?
— Gil Arcia (@GilArciaBUCS) March 23, 2017
https://twitter.com/GilArciaBUCS/status/845046143570599945
Best advice I can give is take a lot of what you hear over the next month with a grain of salt. There will be misinformation put out there on purpose in an attempt for teams to put themselves in the best position possible.
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I don’t think for one second that Cook slips out of the first and I have a very hard time believing anyone would choose Joe Mixon over Dalvin Cook with their jobs on the line based on off-field issues. On the field? That’s a close race. Off the field, there will be virtually no backlash whatsoever to a team selecting Cook.
A team selecting Mixon? That could become a circus very, very fast.