Dalvin Cook/Alexander Mattison – RBs
I’m going to cheat a little bit here this week and name two guys because it remains to be seen how Mike Zimmer will use his running backs come Sunday.
Dalvin Cook, one of the league’s best running backs has missed two games this season and backup Alexander Mattison has been great starting in his place.
Now, Cook is back at practice and expected to play this weekend while Mattison is dealing with an injury.
However, if both are healthy, due to the surprising play by Mattison, don’t be surprised if Minnesota uses a two-headed duo approach as the Carolina Panthers run defense has been very good this year.
Both have the potential to have big games and the Panthers can’t allow either one of them to get much going. Cook has been among the league’s best from the moment he arrived at the Vikings as a second-round pick out of Florida State, and once he sees an opening he’s guaranteed to break it off for big yardage.
Ball security can be a problem for Cook – as we saw with Jeremy Chinn’s takeaway and touchdowns when the two sides met in 2020. So attempting to rip the football from his grasp is an option Carolina’s defense should be trying at every possible opportunity.