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Dalvin Cook Injury Update Could Cause Alexander Mattison Fantasy Outlook to Explode

By Jason Schandl

Dalvin Cook's injury could make Alexander Mattison a must-start fantasy option.
Dalvin Cook's injury could make Alexander Mattison a must-start fantasy option. / Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
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Minnesota Vikings star running back Dalvin Cook went down with an injury in the third quarter of Sunday's Week 12 matchup against the Carolina Panthers. There's no word yet on the severity of the injury, but he was down for a while, and it wouldn't be at all surprising if he missed some time.

That would make Alexander Mattison the Vikes' RB1, which would send Mattison's fantasy football outlook skyrocketing.

Cook has been an absolute workhorse this season, averaging 25.6 opportunities (22.3 carries plus 3.3 targets) per game. Before Week 12, he'd played at least 80% of the Vikings' offensive snaps in three of the last four games. That has left Mattison averaging just 7.2 carries and 1.1 targets per game.

Alexander Mattison Fantasy Outlook

With Cook out of the way, though, Mattison should immediately assume workhorse volume.

Cook went down early in Week 5 and sat out Week 6 with an injury earlier this season. In those two games, Mattison saw a combined 30 carries and 5 targets.

Volume like that would immediately lift Mattison into the top-15 fantasy RB range. His short-term outlook would be particularly strong, as the Vikings play the Jacksonville Jaguars (eighth most fantasy points per game allowed to RBs) in Week 13.

All of this, of course, is contingent on Cook's health, so keep a close eye on that situation.

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Jason Schandl is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Jason Schandl also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username Jaymun. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.