Former New York Jets Star: No ‘Emergency Plan’ When Rodgers Was Hurt

Former New York Jets running back Dalvin Cook talked about his one season with the team during a press conference on Friday.

Dec 3, 2023; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Jets running back Dalvin Cook (33) runs with the ball against the Atlanta Falcons during the first quarter at MetLife Stadium. / Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Dalvin Cook is now a Dallas Cowboys running back, though the former Pro Bowl selection will start the season on the practice squad.

Eventually, he’ll join a running back room that includes another former All-Pro, Ezekiel Elliott, along with a young Rico Dowdle and Deuce Vaughn.

Behind center will be Dak Prescott. That was not a luxury Cook had with the New York Jets last season.

During his first meeting with reporters in Dallas since the signing, he was asked about his time with the Jets. He didn’t take shots at the organization or even consider last year a “disappointment,” according to ESPN.

But he made clear what most understood as last year’s 7-11 season unfolded — the Jets were unprepared for life without quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

"I don't really want to speak on the situation, but when Aaron went down on Play 4, everything was just a little bit different," Cook said. "There wasn't any emergency plan. ... Aaron went down Play 4, and it was just kind of like, 'What [do] we do?' That's just what it was.”

The Jets went from a potential contender for a playoff berth to a franchise with a revolving door of quarterbacks trying to keep things together. As a result, Cook’s numbers last season paled in comparison to his standard.

Last season he gained just 214 yards on 67 carries with no scores as he spent part of that offseason recovering from shoulder surgery.

In 2022, his last season with the Minnesota Vikings, he was his usual self, as he gained 1,173 yards, scored eight touchdowns was named to the Pro Bowl for the fourth straight season.

Rodgers is back after missing all of last season and at 40 years old he knows he only has a few years left to get back to another Super Bowl. He’s leading a franchise that hasn’t been to the playoffs in more than a decade.

But, if healthy, he has the credentials to help get the Jets back, as he’s thrown for nearly 60,000 career yards and has won four NFL MVP awards and been named first-team All-Pro four times.

Cook’s departure opens up the door for third-year back Breece Hall to fulfill the potential that made him a second-round pick out of Iowa State.

Hall missed most of his rookie season with a torn ACL, but in 2023 he rebounded by rushing for 994 yards and five touchdowns. The return of Rodgers should force defenses out of the run fronts he saw a season ago.