Chris Cook jailed, won't play

The Vikings were expecting Chris Cook to start in place of injured Antoine Winfield Sunday against the Packers, but he will be unavailable after being arrested at 4 a.m. today, booked and charged with suspicion of domestic assault.

With Antoine Winfield and Jamarca Sanford both listed as doubtful for tomorrow’s game with the Packers, the Vikings knew their secondary would likely be depleted, but they didn’t expect the news that cornerback Chris Cook won't available because he is in jail after being booked on suspicion of domestic assault.

Cook currently remains in Hennepin County Jail after being arrested and booked at 4:06 a.m. today on suspicion of domestic assault. The arrest happened at his home in Eden Prairie.

In a brief statement from the team, it said, “we take this matter very seriously and are still gathering all the details of the incident.”

On Saturday afternoon, the Vikings officiallly announced that Cook would not play Sunday.

Cook was not allowed bail because the courts are shut down over the weekend, which means that he will almost surely remain in jail until his first court appearance Monday.

Cook was charged back in March in his hometown of Lynchburg, Va. after being accused of brandishing a gun in a verbal altercation with a neighbor. Under the peculiarities of Virginia law, people can be arrested based solely on a complaint from another citizen. He was later cleared of the charges and didn’t face punishment from the NFL because of the lack of proof that the charges were genuine or accurate.

For a Vikings team that was expecting Cook to be its starting cornerback Sunday against the pass-happy Packers, it appears as though Cook will spend Sunday in Hennepin County Jail and face both the legal consequences of the charges, but a potential suspension from the Vikings or the NFL as well.

His first court appearance is scheduled for 8:15 a.m. Monday.