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| Chris Cook Vikings Rookie CB |
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| Cedric Griffin |
Rookie cornerback Chris Cook appears set to make his NFL debut Sunday against the Detroit Lions after being sidelined since the Vikings' third preseason game because of a knee injury.
Cook, who had arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee, said he worked with the first-team defense this week in the nickel package and also rotated in with the first-team base defense. Cook said that rotation also included cornerback Cedric Griffin, who is working to return after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last January in the NFC title game.
Both Cook and Griffin are listed as questionable on the injury report, meaning there is a 50-50 chance they will play.
"I feel pretty good," Cook said Friday. "I had three good days of practice. I feel like my movements are good and I'm just waiting for the green light. ... I feel like I'm game-ready and I feel like I can do anything that the coaches ask me to do as far as our defensive calls. I'm just waiting on somebody to tell me what the word is."
Cook said his workload in practice this week was considerably more than last week.
"I'm doing way more," he said. "Last week I wasn't taking reps with the defense. This week I took reps. That was pretty successful because I felt pretty good running around out there."
Griffin, who has been practicing for three weeks, said he's getting increased reps, too. He was listed as "limited" in all practices this week.
"I feel really comfortable right now," he said. "My confidence is high. I feel good with my legs, my wind is great right now. I think I'll get in the game one of these weeks and see how it goes from there."
Refresher Course :
Veteran wide receiver Hank Baskett started his career with the Vikings and has experience in the West Coast system so he said learning the offense this week hasn't been too difficult. Baskett, who signed with the team on Wednesday, said the coaching staff gave him the entire Lions game plan.
