Dalvin Cook insists he is innocent of abuse of a former girlfriend, whose lawsuit filed Tuesday accuses the Vikings running back of assault, battery and false imprisonment during an altercation a year ago.
“I just want everybody to know I’m the victim in this situation and the truth and the details about the situation will come out at a further time,” Cook said Wednesday, via Courtney Cronin of ESPN.
Gracelyn Trimble, 26, flew to Minnesota in November 2020 to break up with Cook and retrieve her belongings, according to the lawsuit. She accuses Cook of giving her “a concussion, leaving a scar on my face and taking me through hell.” She is seeking unspecified monetary damages.
Cook’s attorney, David Valentini, contends Trimble broke into Cook’s home, assaulted the NFL player and two houseguests and then allegedly tried to extort Cook for millions of dollars. Cook deferred all questions about details in the lawsuit to his attorney and his agent, Zac Hiller. He did say he has no plans to countersue.
“Like I said, I don’t want to go into further details about it,” Cook said. “I know that the facts of the situation will come out and clear everything up that y’all are trying to get answers to.”
According to the lawsuit, Trimble and Cook continued to see each other off and on until permanently splitting in May. Cook said he no longer has contact with Trimble.
Cook practiced Wednesday, and the NFL said earlier in the day that his status remains unchanged. Thus, Cook is eligible to play in Week 10.
“Just seeing my business out on the social web is not ideal for me,” Cook said. “I try to walk that straight line, but bumps and bruises come through life and it’s how you handle it. I’ve been through a lot of tough things in my life, and I’ve got my head up high knowing that the truth will come out. I hate being a distraction to the team, but I know those guys got my back 1,000 percent. Just going to take this thing day by day, and I know my team’s here for me and I’m there for them day by day.”