Buffalo Rumblings
An oft-repeated phrase in plenty of Bills Mafia circles, the saying goes that, essentially, Buffalo Bills running back James Cook is an unreliable receiver. In the lead up to the 2022 NFL Draft, many analysts were quick to praise Cook for his dual-threat ability. With the Georgia Bulldogs, Cook proved capable lined up anywhere as a skill player.
Plenty of analysts saw him as a perfect complementary, change-of-pace back; perhaps someone ill-suited to featured work due to size and strength concerns, yet a potential matchup nightmare in passing situations thanks to his speed and hands. Respected draft analyst Lance Zierlein’s NFL comparison for Cook was none other than fellow Bills running back Darrynton Evans.
Bills fans were excited about Cook’s prospects in Orchard Park, NY — a more nuanced version of Alvin Kamara, if you will. Yet, no one quite knew what to expect from Cook. Was he the heir-apparent to C.J. Spiller, or someone destined to play a more thorough role given time in the system?
At Georgia Cook was part of a timeshare and employed as a true X-factor, his best season coming as a senior where he had 113 rushes for 728 yards and seven touchdowns; adding 27 receptions for 284 yards and four more scores. In four seasons with the Bulldogs, Cook carried the ball 230 times for 1,503 yards and 14 touchdowns; with 67 receptions for 730 yards and six touchdowns.
At first blush, those numbers are good (heavily lifted by his senior season), but not representative of a featured back. Hence the analysis trends being what they were about Cook. Yet consider that the Bulldogs had an enviable roster of running backs, with D’Andre Swift and Zamir White leading the way during much of Cook’s time at Georgia. But Cook was too good to keep off the field, and he made teams pay almost every time he touched the ball.
His reputation as a versatile receiver caught everyone’s attention, and it became near-routine to see him take outlet passes far beyond expectations or haul in downfield grabs for huge gains. James Cook was the perfect X-factor the likes of which general manager Brandon Beane had sought out since day one.
Yet Cook’s rookie season didn’t have the most promising beginning; that fumble on his first carry set him in head coach Sean McDermott’s doghouse. It was a place that Cook found himself in a few times over the course of his first two NFL campaigns. Though he wasn’t the only player who didn’t perform up to his coach’s expectations, it was often only Cook who wasn’t on the field with the offense in situations that demanded his ability.
Though just speculation here, what many saw as “tough love” being doled out by McDermott may have been rooted in deeper on-field concerns about Cook. After all, no team has ever lost a game on a fumble in the first quarter, the first play of a game. Right?
Suddenly, people began to focus in on Cook’s...
