Bills' James Cook: Slated to work alongside Harris
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Cook and Nyheim Hines will face competition for reps out of the Buffalo backfield in 2023 after the Bills signed Damien Harris to a one-year contract earlier this week, Maddy Glab of the team's official site reports.
The addition of Harris helps fill the void created by the departure of Devin Singletary, who recently signed a deal with the Texans. As a rookie last season, Cook logged 89 carries for 507 yards and two touchdowns to go along with a 21-180-1 receiving line in 16 games. The 5-foot-11, 213-pound Harris brings added power to Buffalo's backfield mix and can be expected to absorb a decent chunk of the 177 carries vacated by Singletary, especially in early down and short-yardage situations. Even so, the 5-foot-11, 190-pound Cook should still have an opportunity to garner more volume in 2023, while Hines (5-foot-8, 198 pounds) continues to work in a change-of-pace role. As things stand, Cook's fantasy upside hinges on how much of Singletary's prior role (which also included 52 targets) he takes on this coming season while working alongside Harris.
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Bills' James Cook: Expected to see more work in 2023
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Bills GM Brandon Beane said Cook is expected to a bigger part of the offense in 2023, according to Matt Lombardo of Heavy.com.
"We're excited about Cook, and looking forward to what he can do in Year 2, especially with an expanded workload and more touches," Beane said Tuesday. With Devin Singletary slated for free agency this offseason, Cook has a chance to carve out the lead-back job in Buffalo after he averaged 5.7 yards per carry on 89 rushes as a rookie. The Bills will very likely add to their backfield this offseason, but Cook's fantasy arrow is pointing upward.
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Bills' James Cook: Scores in Sunday's win
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Cook rushed 12 times for 39 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 34-31 win over the Dolphins in the wild-card round.
Cook took a handoff 12 yards to help double Buffalo's lead during the first quarter. Although he also had a 13-yard rush, Cook found little room to maneuver on his other carries. Meanwhile, teammate Devin Singletary rushed 10 times for 48 yards. As the Bills now advance to the AFC divisional round, expect Cook and Singletary to continuing sharing snaps alongside quarterback Josh Allen.
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Bills' James Cook: Outplays Singletary in Week 18 win
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Cook rushed nine times for 45 yards and caught both of his targets for six yards in Sunday's 35-23 win over the Patriots.
Cook was more effective than Devin Singletary, who mustered only 32 yards on eight touches and lost a fumble. After being used sparingly to start the season, the rookie second-round pick out of Georgia started to take on a larger share of Buffalo's backfield touches down the stretch, with 338 of Cook's 507 rushing yards coming in his last seven games. Cook and Singletary will likely continue to split carries in the wild-card round against the Dolphins.
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Bills' James Cook: Career-best effort Christmas Eve
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Cook rushed 11 times for 99 yards and a touchdown and caught one of two targets for nine yards in Buffalo's win over Chicago on Saturday.
The 99 rushing yards and the 108 scrimmage yards are career highs for the rookie, who continues to provide the Bills with a Robin to Devin Singletary's Batman. Cook has gone over 100 yards from scrimmage or scored a TD in three of the past four games, giving him solid value as a No. 2 running back. He'll continue to see regular touches, as newcomer Nyheim Hines barely gets looks in the regular game plan.
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Bills' James Cook: Week 17 Early Waiver Targets (Add/Drop)
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We've fallen for it before, so I don't want to make it seem like I'm viewing Cook as a must-start running back or anything. The Bills typically don't run the ball very often. They don't throw to their backs much, and when they do, Devin Singletary still tends to be the first option in most situations. But Cook continues to look very good when given the opportunity to do so, which tends to happen in games where the Bills don't need to throw much. Week 17 against the high-powered Bengals offense may not be one of the situations, but Cook has scored in consecutive games, so he could be in play if you need a running back. However, if you play into Week 18, Cook could be in line for a lot of work against the Patriots – he had 105 total yards on 20 touches the last time the Bills faced the Patriots, and Buffalo could be in position to rest their starters in that one.
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Bills' James Cook: Struggles to find open running room
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Cook carried four times for six yards and added a nine-yard reception in Sunday's 20-12 win over the Jets.
Though he and starter Devin Singletary worked in a relatively even timeshare for the second week in a row, Cook wasn't able to build on his breakthrough Week 13 outing against the Patriots, during which the rookie totaled 105 yards from scrimmage on 20 touches. Singletary was the more productive of the two backs versus the Jets (eight carries for 39 yards, one catch for four yards), but not so much so that it will guarantee him the majority of the snaps moving forward. Even if Cook sees his 41 percent snap share from Week 14 tail off a bit in another divisional game this Sunday against the Dolphins, he should at least remain ahead of trade-deadline pickup Nyheim Hines in the Bills' backfield pecking order.
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Bills' James Cook: Week 14 Adds (RB Preview)
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Cook outplayed Devin Singletary in the Bills most-recent game and he certainly has more upside. If the 20 touches he earned in Week 13 carries over for the rest of the season, he could be a must-start running back in the Fantasy playoffs. In Week 14, due to role uncertainty and a tough matchup, Cook is a high-end flex.
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Bills' James Cook: Week 14 Waiver Priority List
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Cook had a career game in Week 13 at New England with 14 carries for 64 yards, along with six catches for 41 yards on six targets. Those are season-highs in carries, targets and catches and tied his season high in receiving yards. While Devin Singletary will likely remain the lead role, Cook should continue to get more work and could become a flex in the majority of leagues. And if Singletary were to miss any time -- or the Bills decide Cook is the better running back -- and Cook ends up in the lead role then he could become a No. 2 running back in all formats. He's worth adding for at least 10 percent of your remaining FAB.
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Bills' James Cook: Week 12 Waiver Priority List
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So much for Cook losing his job to Nyheim Hines. Since Hines was added at the trade deadline, Cook has looked fantastic, including a career-best performance for the rookie in Week 11 against Cleveland with 11 carries for 86 yards. He's the clear handcuff for Devin Singletary, which gives him lottery-ticket appeal, but he might be working his way into flex territory in deeper leagues. Cook is worth adding in all leagues for 5-10 percent of your remaining FAB.
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Bills' James Cook: Making his mark
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Cook rushed 11 times for 86 yards in Buffalo's win over over the Browns on Sunday. He was targeted twice but did not catch a pass.
This was not a case of garbage-time yards for the rookie backup to Devin Singletary, as the contest was closely contested for much of the afternoon, and Cook was used as an effective change-up to Singletary. The former showed his speed on a few of the runs and co-led the Bills in rushing yardage. While Singletary is the clear-cut No. 1 and seems to be picking up steam himself, Cook clearly is ahead of trade deadline acquisition Nyheim Hines, who's been used primarily in the return game and saw one carry for minus-8 yards Sunday. With the Bills starting to rely more on the run the last couple of games, Cook could be worth a look in deeper leagues. In keeper formats, he already should be on rosters.
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Bills' James Cook: Keeps No. 2 role in Week 9
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Cook took four carries for 15 yards and gathered in two of four targets for 18 yards during Sunday's 20-17 loss at the Jets.
Despite the addition of Nyheim Hines from the Colts prior to last week's trade deadline, Cook remained the No. 2 running back in terms of usage Week 9, at least for one game. Devin Singletary paced the Bills backfield with 12 touches on a 74 percent snap share, Cook had six touches while playing 23 percent of the plays, and Hines didn't have a rush and couldn't haul in his only target on four offensive snaps. The script may flip as Hines grows more accustomed to the playbook, but for the time being Cook may have retained some utility in what typically is a high-powered offense.
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Bills' James Cook: Likely to sit third on depth chart
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Cook is expected to head into the Bills' Week 9 game against the Jets as the team's third running back after Buffalo acquired Nyheim Hines from Indianapolis on Tuesday, Michael Giardi of NFL Network reports.
Fresh off carrying five times for 35 yards while adding a 41-yard reception in Sunday's win over the Packers, Cook might have seemed poised to handle a larger role in the second half of the season behind top back Devin Singletary. Instead, the Bills' decision to trade for Hines looks like it'll render Cook as little more than an insurance option, given that Hines has been one of the NFL's top pass-catching backs since entering the NFL in 2018. Singletary is averaging a healthy 4.5 yards per carry on the season and hasn't done anything to change his standing as the Bills' preferred option on early downs, so it'll likely take an absence from him before Cook picks up more extensive work outside of a garbage-time scenario. It's possible Cook even finds himself on the inactive list this weekend, given that the fourth running back on the roster, Taiwan Jones, is a core special-teams contributor who dresses for every game.
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Bills' James Cook: Combines for 76 yards in win
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Cook rushed five times for 35 yards and caught his lone target for 41 yards in Sunday's 27-17 win over the Packers.
Cook stuck as the clear No. 2 back behind Devin Singletary for the second week in a row. The rookie second-round pick showed burst when he was on the field, ripping off 41 yards on an impressive catch in addition to his work as a rusher. Devin Singletary dominated the backfield touches with 15 to Cook's six, so it appears that the Bills feel more comfortable with the consistent veteran option while the team continues to rack up wins. That said, Cook is looking like a player worth stashing in the event he takes over as starter (via injury or coaching decision) later this season. For now, it's hard to recommend starting a player in fantasy with such a limited role heading into a matchup against the Jets next Sunday.
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Bills' James Cook: Week 7 Waiver Priority List
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The Bills are on a bye in Week 7, so adding Cook isn't a huge priority. But you might want to stash him now if you have an open roster spot. Tom Spencer, who is in the booth for CBS with Jim Nantz and Tony Romo, told CBS Sports HQ prior to the Bills-Chiefs game in Week 6 that Cook is headed for a bigger role as the season goes on. And after Zack Moss was a healthy scratch against the Chiefs, it appears like Cook is now No. 2 on the depth chart. Cook could be a potential lottery ticket, and he's worth 1 percent of your remaining FAB.
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Bills' James Cook: Scores first NFL touchdown
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Cool rushed four times for 31 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's win over the Steelers. He was not targeted in the passing game.
Cook saw extra time with the game being a laugher, as all four of the Bills' top rushers averaged at least seven yards per carry. And that's outside of Josh Allen's 424 passing yards. Both Cook and Zack Moss are well behind Devin Singletary in the pecking order, though Cook -- a second-round rookie -- showed some real burst on his TD run Sunday, so it'll be interesting to see how the carries shake out in the coming weeks when Singletary needs a breather.
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Bills' James Cook: Gets 11 carries in mop-up duty
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Cook rushed 11 times for 53 yards and failed to catch his only target in Monday's 41-7 win over the Titans.
Cook got an extensive audition after the game got out of hand, and the rookie second-round pick looked explosive, with most of his yardage coming on a 33-yard burst to open Buffalo's final drive. For now, Cook's usage in competitive games will be limited to splitting change-of-pace duties behind Devin Singletary with Zack Moss, though this likely won't be the last blowout the Bills orchestrate in 2022.
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Bills' James Cook: Debut to forget
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Cook fumbled on his very first NFL rushing attempt in Thursday's win over the Rams and did not receive another carry of target in the passing game.
If Cook was coached by the great Bill Belichick, he might not see the field again until Week 16. While we can kid on that point, the Bills didn't bench him completely following the miscue. Still, Cook saw only five percent of the offensive snaps compared to Devin Singletary's 59 percent and and Zack Moss's 37 percent. While Cook is a second-round pick and has plenty of upside, it's hard to see him leap-frogging Singletary even if he does hold onto the ball better. He'll see his looks, but it's going to be tough to start this rookie in fantasy lineups as part of a running back by committee (where he's not even the top guy) matched with a guy that's one of the top rushing quarterbacks in the league. Cook is a bench guy for now with long-term upside.
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Bills' James Cook: Minimal impact in preseason debut
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Cook carried the ball three times for five yards in Saturday's 27-24 preseason win over the Colts. He added one reception on one target for five yards.
Cook mixed in with Zack Moss on the Bills' first offensive possession of the game and was on the field for a few offensive possessions thereafter. He couldn't get going in any facet of the game and was outplayed by Moss, who managed 37 yards on three attempts. Devin Singletary didn't suit up Saturday but is expected to serve as the lead back in Buffalo to begin the season, while Moss and Cook figure to battle for a complementary role out of the backfield.
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Bills' James Cook: Fleshing out receiving skills
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Cook has taken some reps with the wide receivers in camp to work on his route running and footwork, Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic reports.
The Bills are enthralled with Cook's pass-catching ability out of the backfield, so the rookie second-round pick's likely to carve out a role as a change-of-pace complement to Devin Singletary. Spending some time with the receivers coaches should help Cook hone his skill set, though he's still likely to play primarily at running back in games.
