MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Vikings star running back Dalvin Cook's father, James Cook, died unexpectedly Tuesday.
According to team officials, Cook returned to his hometown Miami Wednesday morning and won't play in the Vikings' regular season finale against the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family, and just want him to take all the time that he needs to process through that," Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins said during a media availability on Wednesday.
Cook posted some photos of his dad on his Instagram account, including updating his profile picture of the two of them.
Cook was recently named to the Pro Bowl as he leads the NFC with 1,557 rushing yards and 17 total touchdowns. His 1,918 all-purpose yards are tops in the NFL.
The Vikings were officially eliminated from postseason play after last week's loss to the New Orleans Saints. Minnesota is 6-9, marking just the second time the team will finish below .500 since Mike Zimmer took over as head coach in 2014. The only other year the Vikings finished below .500 in that span was in 2014, in Zimmer's first season.
"First and foremost, I want to give all my thoughts and prayers to Dalvin and his family. It's a tough thing to lose a loved one," said star rookie wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
There is no word from the team yet who will start in Cook's place on Sunday. Cook's backup Alexander Mattison missed last week's game with a concussion.
