EAGAN, Minn. — Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook was quick to answer on Monday afternoon when asked about his status for Sunday's Wild Card game against the New Orleans Saints.
"I'll be ready to go," said Cook, who has missed the past two games with a shoulder injury.
The third-year back has played an instrumental role in Vikings offense, which ranks eighth in the league in scoring. While pacing the team with 1,135 rushing yards and 13 rushing TDs, he's also second on the team in receptions (53) and receiving yards (519).
"I feel good," said Cook, who was recently named to his first Pro Bowl. "Two weeks of rest, got treatment real hard. Been putting the time in, I feel good."
Cook was a rookie the last time the Vikings made the postseason -- two years ago when Minnesota advanced to the NFC Championship game before losing to the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles -- but he wasn't able to see the field.
In his rookie campaign, the second-round pick out of Florida State spent most of the season on the sideline after tearing his ACL in a Week 4 contest against the Detroit Lions.
"It was exciting watching the guys compete, watching the guys make plays (and) wishing I was out there," said Cook, reflecting back on the Vikings' 2017-18 playoff run. "But now is my turn to go."
In that season, veteran running back Latavius Murray stepped in to carry the Vikings' rushing attack. He finished with a team-high 842 rushing yards and 8 TDs in the regular season and another 68 yards and a TD in the postseason. This year, Murray will be lining up opposite the Minnesota Vikings as a running back for New Orleans.
"We talked (Sunday) night," said Cook of his former teammate. "We're ready to play against each other. It's the right scenario — it's the playoffs."
There are plenty of ties between the two franchises, especially over the past 10 years. It was the Saints that ended the Vikings' 2009 season in the NFC Championship, and most recently, the Vikings, who responded with the "Minneapolis Miracle," to stun the Saints two years ago in the postseason.
"The hype is going to be there," said Cook. "We're going to be in (the Mercedes-Benz Superdome) ... their fans are going to be ready to go, and we've just got to control our emotions and know what we're here for, and that's to win the football game."
