Patriots Exec Confirms Dalvin Cook Interest, Praises Free Agent Back

FOXBORO, Mass. -- With DeAndre Hopkins now in Tennessee, Dalvin Cook is the biggest name remaining on the free agent market.

Yes, the Patriots have interest in the Pro Bowl running back.

Matt Groh, New England's director of player personnel, on Wednesday confirmed the Patriots have been in contact with Cook, who was released by the Minnesota Vikings last month.

"We talked to DeAndre Hopkins; that's well-known," Groh said after the Patriots' first training camp practice outside Gillette Stadium. "We explore as many options as we can, and Dalvin's another player."

Groh said it's rare for a star-level player like Cook to be unsigned in late July. Typically, the players who linger in free agency until this point are middling veterans or bottom-of-the-roster camp fodder.

"This is a really, really unique situation for both of these players," Groh said, referring to Cook and Hopkins. "You don't typically have players of this caliber available at this time. The contracts that are signed for players right now are nowhere near in the neighborhood that these players are generally expected to sign. Usually, these are all minimum (salary) guys, so this is a unique situation. And in any unique situation, I think everybody evaluates and looks at it."

Groh noted that he "saw (Cook) firsthand" in the Patriots' Thanksgiving night loss in Minnesota last season. That was one of Cook's worst performances of 2022 (22 carries for 42 yards, four catches for 14 yards) and his overall effectiveness diminished in his final season with the Vikings, but he still rushed for 1,173 yards and eight touchdowns and appeared in all 17 games.

The 27-year-old was a 1,100-yard rusher in each of the last four seasons, adding an average of 42.5 receptions per year and making four consecutive Pro Bowls. Pairing Cook with returning standout Rhamondre Stevenson would give the Patriots arguably the best backfield tandem in the NFL.

Stevenson, who amassed 1,461 yards from scrimmage in 2022, is the only sure thing in New England's current running back room. Pierre Strong and Kevin Harris didn't see much offensive playing time as rookies last season, and J.J. Taylor has spent most of his Patriots tenure on the practice squad. Versatile veteran Ty Montgomery could help out on third downs, but he was practicing with the receivers Wednesday and missed nearly all of last season with an injury.

The Patriots have explored adding other experienced options at the position, hosting Leonard Fournette and Darrell Henderson for free agent visits last week.

"You can never have too many good players," Groh said. "We worked out a couple running backs. We've worked out some different positions here. We're going to continue to work out players just like every team in the league is doing. Exploring every possibility that we can to make this as strong a roster as possible."