Inside The Vikings

Vikings Notes: Cook Says he's "Best Back in the Game," Diggs and Thielen Comment on Trade

Also, former Viking Tom Johnson settled a lawsuit and announced his retirement.

Will Ragatz

Hopefully everyone is staying healthy during this ongoing coronavirus situation. Let's get caught up on the latest notable Vikings quotes, news, and trending topics.

Read: Everson Griffen Opens Up About 2018 Mental Health Struggles

Dalvin Cook says he's league's best back, wants to stay with Vikings long-term

Dalvin Cook believes he's the best running back in the NFL. He also would love to sign a long-term deal to stay in Minnesota. Neither of those things are particularly surprising, but it's noteworthy that he said them. Cook said both things in an interview with Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press, which you can find here.

Cook cited his versatility as the reasoning behind his claim to be the best back in football. He can run between the tackles, catch balls out of the backfield, and block. "Some guys just don't do as much as I do," Cook told Tomasson. He certainly has an argument from a talent standpoint, but there's plenty of competition from players like Christian McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley, and Ezekiel Elliott. Cook has also not yet stayed healthy for an entire season in his three-year career.

Entering the final year of his rookie contract, Cook would like to sign an extension and stay with the Vikings.

The debate over whether or not it makes sense to pay Cook big money, given the recent failures of second contracts for running backs, will rage on until the Vikings make a decision.

Stefon Diggs opens up on trade from Vikings, says Kirk Cousins was one of the first people to reach out

On Friday, former Vikings receiver Stefon Diggs had a piece published in the Player's Tribune where he opened up about his trade to the Bills for the first time.

He expressed his excitement to get to Buffalo and play with Josh Allen, citing what he saw from Allen in the Bills' shocking blowout win in Minnesota in 2018. Diggs is also apparently looking forward to playing for the Bills' passionate fanbase and eating a lot of chicken wings.

More notably for Vikings fans, Diggs talked about leaving Minnesota. He said Kirk Cousins was one of the first guys to reach out to him after the trade, which should dispel the notion that the two had a contentious relationship.

He was super appreciative of the time we spent together over the last couple of years, and he was just as encouraging, wishing me the best of luck in Buffalo. And it’s like … what do I even say about Kirk? This is a man who has invited me into his home. Introduced me to his family. Put in the extra hours with us. He’s a guy who, through all the ups and downs over the last couple of years, I’ve developed a tremendous amount of appreciation and respect for. I’m definitely going to miss playing with and learning from him.

Diggs said that Adam Thielen also texted him right away, and said he can't wait to jersey-swap with him when the Vikings and Bills next play. Kyle Rudolph was another player to reach out. Diggs also talked about what he'll miss about Minnesota: the fans, connecting with people in the community, his annual Thanksgiving turkey drive, and much more.

Thielen talks about Diggs trade

The close relationship between Thielen and Diggs has been well-documented. There was this exchange over social media shortly after the trade:

Last week, Thielen went on the radio and called the trade a "bummer," because of how fun it was to play with Diggs. This week, Thielen again commented on the Diggs trade while doing an interview with KSTP regarding his charity radiothon.

"It's going to be a lot different when we get back to normalcy," Thielen told Darren Wolfson. "The connection we had inside the film room, on the field, in practices, things like that, it's going to be a lot different. But that's the NFL, that's just how it goes. I've been around long enough to know that it's not going to be the same thing every year."

Former Viking Tom Johnson settles 2016 lawsuit, confirms retirement

Also on Friday, the city of Minneapolis signed off on a $475,000 payment to former Vikings defensive tackle Tom Johnson, settling a lawsuit "in which he accused two police officers of assaulting him outside of a downtown bar nearly six years ago," according to the Star Tribune.

The officers allegedly pepper-sprayed and shocked Johnson with a Taser while off-duty, because Johnson was recording them with his cell phone. The city agreed to settle because going to trial risked a much larger financial loss. Johnson was cleared off all wrong-doing, but his attorneys argued that the incident "saddled him with a negative image as 'a troublemaker and a wrongdoer, which defined the perception of him by the public and, more importantly, by teams around the NFL.'"

Johnson, who has been out of the league since spending 2014 through 2018 with the Vikings, told Tomasson that he is officially retired. He finishes his eight-year NFL career with 25.5 sacks.

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Will Ragatz
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