Many draft prognosticators pegged Florida State running back Dalvin Cook as a first-round talent. Then Thursday's fall happened, and he's still on the board heading into Round 2.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported on NFL Draft Kickoff that Cook's slide was caused mostly by off-field concerns.
"So the reason as far as I'm told (his slide) relates to some of the people that he hangs out with off the field," Rapoport said. "It's more upbringing than character if that makes any sense. Because at this point, from what I'm told, the on-field character is very good, considered to be at Florida State an excellent teammate, a very hard worker. But some of it is the situations he puts himself in off the field. He has promised teams that the people around him are not coming with him to the NFL, and we'll see how that puts him as far as the standing goes in the second round today."
Cook had a series of transgressions while at FSU. The MMQB's Robert Klemko ran a fantastic in-depth look at the running back's upbringing, dating back to his middle school days, which does a great job detailing Cook's history.
Cook heads into the second round as NFL Media senior analyst Gil Brandt's top remaining player.
While teams shied away from the Seminoles' all-time leading rusher in the first round, Cook possesses game-changing talent that could make him a steal on Day 2, if his off-field issues are, in fact, in the past.
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