James Cook's Stats, Metrics, Game Logs, Projections & Rankings

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook got involved in Saturday night's preseason victory over the hosting Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium, rushing six times for 25 yards in the win. Cook tacked on a six-yard catch on Saturday against Pittsburgh, running for a long gain of eight yards. The star third-year back trailed only superstars Christian McCaffrey and Breece Hall among RBs with 1,567 yards from scrimmage in 17 games as Buffalo's lead back last season, but even though incumbent veteran Latavius Murray is no longer around to vulture touchdowns from him, Cook now has rookie fourth-rounder Ray Davis to worry about in the backfield this fall. Davis is a threat to siphon the occasional carry on early downs and also has pass-catching ability, but Cook will start the season as a surefire RB2 option in what became a run-heavy Bills offense during the second half of last year.

A slight trend that has taken shape for Buffalo Bills starting running back James Cook in training camp this summer has been some ball-security issues near the end of his plays. On a handful of occasions, Cook has allowed the football to hit the ground, and it happened twice at practice on Wednesday. However, The Athletic's Joe Buscaglia wouldn't expect it to impact Cook's time on the field at this point. However, that could change if his ball-security issues carry into the regular season. For now, Cook is still the team's unquestioned RB1 by a good margin, and it will remain that way until further notice. The 24-year-old had four fumbles in 2023. Power running isn't Cook's forte, but he's a strong pass-catcher and should be more valuable as a high-end RB2 in point-per-reception leagues going into his third year in the NFL.

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook missed practice on Sunday due to a personal matter and has returned on Monday morning. His absence was excused on Sunday, so the likely starting running back is back on the field. Cook posted 1122 yards on 237 attempts and two touchdowns on the ground and 445 yards on 44 receptions with four scores. He had plenty of goal-line chances stolen by Josh Allen quarterback keepers, so Cook does have the potential to find the endzone a bit more this season. As of right now, Rotoballer has him ranked as the 15th-best RB in PPR formats. He'll see most of the groundwork with Ty Johnson as his main backup.

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook (personal) was excused from Sunday's training camp practice for personal reasons. It's unknown how long Cook might be away from the team, but it's nothing that is going to affect his fantasy value heading into the 2024 season. The 24-year-old former second-round selection (63rd overall) in the 2022 NFL draft out of Georgia took on a much larger role in his sophomore season in 2023 and earned his first Pro Bowl nod, carrying the ball 237 times for 1,122 yards and just two touchdowns. He added 44 receptions on 54 targets for 445 additional yards and four touchdowns through the air. Cook heads into his third year in the league as Buffalo's unquestioned lead back. He does not thrive between the tackles and will probably never have a high TD ceiling with quarterback Josh Allen vulturing goal-line carries. Cook is more attractive in PPR formats and is listed as RotoBaller's No. 15 fantasy RB.

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook dropped five passes last season, which ranked sixth among all qualified running backs. Early in offseason activities, the third-year pro out of Georgia has continued to struggle in that area, according to Bills reporter Alex Brasky. "James Cook allowed a pass to bounce off his hands, high into the air near the start of team drills at Wednesday's mandatory minicamp." Brasky wrote, "Cook encountered issues with drops last season and has done little to ramp down those concerns during offseason activities." While this is somewhat of a concern, it can often be overplayed when analyzing a player's fantasy football value. After catching 44 passes for 445 yards and ranking second among running backs in yards per reception, the team is unlikely to pull back his receiving workload. That said, rookie fourth-rounder Ray Davis caught 62 passes over his final two collegiate seasons in the SEC and could become a factor on third downs.