RB James Cook, BUF (1 Viewer)

[Sunday Gravy]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

100%. He's a disaster in every facet. Dumb coaching.

 

[Sunday Gravy]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

Just inaccurate stuff here. Not getting into the pass blocking stuff. Multiple games Cook has been running hot, giving a spark to the offense which is something you don't see often with this Bills team and every time they go away from him instead of feeding him.

 

[Football Jones]

The coaches could tell us exactly what kind of pass-blocker Cook is, but I’m betting he would be labeled as sub-par.

Anyway, I just don’t think Cook is good enough to demand carries in a diverse running game. Like most guys his size (weight), he’s got limitations. Achane is about the same weight, but literally has world class speed & seems to be a tougher runner.

That said, I do think Cook could be used more, especially in the passing game. Ideally, he’s best paired with a good bruiser. Maybe Fournette can do the job because Murray isn’t getting it done.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

The coaches could tell us exactly what kind of pass-blocker Cook is, but I’m betting he would be labeled as sub-par.

Anyway, I just don’t think Cook is good enough to demand carries in a diverse running game. Like most guys his size (weight), he’s got limitations. Achane is about the same weight, but literally has world class speed & seems to be a tougher runner.

That said, I do think Cook could be used more, especially in the passing game. Ideally, he’s best paired with a good bruiser. Maybe Fournette can do the job because Murray isn’t getting it done.

It’s a strange development after their head coach spent a good part of the preseason raving about how excellent Cook was in pass protection, citing significant improvement to that part of his game.

It was those comments that led many to believe that Crook would have a solidified role as their dominant ball carrier.

And for the first five or six games, that was clearly the case.

Did he forget how to pass protect between game five and six? Or between games six and seven?

 

[Football Jones]

The coaches could tell us exactly what kind of pass-blocker Cook is, but I’m betting he would be labeled as sub-par.

Anyway, I just don’t think Cook is good enough to demand carries in a diverse running game. Like most guys his size (weight), he’s got limitations. Achane is about the same weight, but literally has world class speed & seems to be a tougher runner.

That said, I do think Cook could be used more, especially in the passing game. Ideally, he’s best paired with a good bruiser. Maybe Fournette can do the job because Murray isn’t getting it done.

It’s a strange development after their head coach spent a good part of the preseason raving about how excellent Cook was in pass protection, citing significant improvement to that part of his game.

It was those comments that led many to believe that Crook would have a solidified role as their dominant ball carrier.

And for the first five or six games, that was clearly the case.

Did he forget how to pass protect between game five and six? Or between games six and seven?

Yeah, I agree it’s weird they don’t use him more.

 

[travdogg]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

Just inaccurate stuff here. Not getting into the pass blocking stuff. Multiple games Cook has been running hot, giving a spark to the offense which is something you don't see often with this Bills team and every time they go away from him instead of feeding him.

What games was Cook running hot and they got away from him? Cook has been running hot 3 times this season.

Week 2 Raiders:
17-123
Week 3 Washington:
15-98
Week 7 NYG:
14-71

Those are all games the Bills won, and 2 of them were blowout wins. Cook is on pace for 204 carries and 42 catches.

The only games they've really gotten away from was the Jags game in London (5 carries for -4 yards) and last night (6-20) both of which were games the defense couldn't get off the field. He's had at least 12 carries in every other game this season.

He's a decent RB, but so far hasn't shown he's anything more than that, which isn't all that dissimilar to Singletary before him.

 

[RenegadeRoy]

Cook is a good example of why looking at the box score after that game isn't all that indicative of what the eyes see during the game IMO. There are drives where he's looking good, or had a big play that got the offense fired up and they go away from him when they get in the 20s or he doesn't see the field for another 10 minutes of game time. If the games where BUF wins decisive are the ones where he's getting 10-15+ carries... why don't they give him more carries? Blowouts or not there seems to be a correlation there.

His targets/catches are abysmal for an RB you want to get into space. The usage there is what is absolutely baffling to me. Every time I've seen him get the ball in space (and not get hammered into the line) he makes a play.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

Just inaccurate stuff here. Not getting into the pass blocking stuff. Multiple games Cook has been running hot, giving a spark to the offense which is something you don't see often with this Bills team and every time they go away from him instead of feeding him.

What games was Cook running hot and they got away from him? Cook has been running hot 3 times this season.

Week 2 Raiders:
17-123
Week 3 Washington:
15-98
Week 7 NYG:
14-71

Those are all games the Bills won, and 2 of them were blowout wins. Cook is on pace for 204 carries and 42 catches.

The only games they've really gotten away from was the Jags game in London (5 carries for -4 yards) and last night (6-20) both of which were games the defense couldn't get off the field. He's had at least 12 carries in every other game this season.

He's a decent RB, but so far hasn't shown he's anything more than that, which isn't all that dissimilar to Singletary before him.

That’s a bit of a chicken and the egg scenario though. When he gets 14-17 carries, you’ll see some fireworks. When they get him in space and throw him the ball, he looks very good as well.

They did that in those three games. He delivered positive results.

I suspect part of this is due to the fact that their defense has has been rather ineffective, likely due to injuries. When they get way down in games, they’re certainly not playing ball control.

That whole team is a bit dysfunctional these days. They have Allen + Diggs, so they always have a puncher’s chance, but they run a fairly predictable offense, and haven’t looked in command of a game in a while.

Part of this might just be losing Dabol, tbh.

 

[efactor]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

Just inaccurate stuff here. Not getting into the pass blocking stuff. Multiple games Cook has been running hot, giving a spark to the offense which is something you don't see often with this Bills team and every time they go away from him instead of feeding him.

What games was Cook running hot and they got away from him? Cook has been running hot 3 times this season.

Week 2 Raiders:
17-123
Week 3 Washington:
15-98
Week 7 NYG:
14-71

Those are all games the Bills won, and 2 of them were blowout wins. Cook is on pace for 204 carries and 42 catches.

The only games they've really gotten away from was the Jags game in London (5 carries for -4 yards) and last night (6-20) both of which were games the defense couldn't get off the field. He's had at least 12 carries in every other game this season.

He's a decent RB, but so far hasn't shown he's anything more than that, which isn't all that dissimilar to Singletary before him.

I guess I don't understand what people expect out of him with the limited carries he gets. Averaging 4.7 YPC and most of his runs are up the middle. He was a full yard better than Singletary last season which is a big part of why they let Singletary walk. Sure he gets stuffed on some of his runs, but all RBs do. When given the chance to make plays in space, he usually does.

I only have one share of Cook, so not that big a deal for me, but I just don't get his usage when Murray is their next option. He should be playing more than 55 percent of snaps under the current circumstances with Harris out. Murray is toast and not even a good goal line back anymore, but there he is as soon as the Bills hit the red zone. Just don't get it with the Bills not having scored 30 points since week 4. Maybe give Cook a shot in close.

 

[Jacob's Ladder]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

Just inaccurate stuff here. Not getting into the pass blocking stuff. Multiple games Cook has been running hot, giving a spark to the offense which is something you don't see often with this Bills team and every time they go away from him instead of feeding him.

What games was Cook running hot and they got away from him? Cook has been running hot 3 times this season.

Week 2 Raiders:
17-123
Week 3 Washington:
15-98
Week 7 NYG:
14-71

Those are all games the Bills won, and 2 of them were blowout wins. Cook is on pace for 204 carries and 42 catches.

The only games they've really gotten away from was the Jags game in London (5 carries for -4 yards) and last night (6-20) both of which were games the defense couldn't get off the field. He's had at least 12 carries in every other game this season.

He's a decent RB, but so far hasn't shown he's anything more than that, which isn't all that dissimilar to Singletary before him.

I guess I don't understand what people expect out of him with the limited carries he gets. Averaging 4.7 YPC and most of his runs are up the middle. He was a full yard better than Singletary last season which is a big part of why they let Singletary walk. Sure he gets stuffed on some of his runs, but all RBs do. When given the chance to make plays in space, he usually does.

I only have one share of Cook, so not that big a deal for me, but I just don't get his usage when Murray is their next option. He should be playing more than 55 percent of snaps under the current circumstances with Harris out. Murray is toast and not even a good goal line back anymore, but there he is as soon as the Bills hit the red zone. Just don't get it with the Bills not having scored 30 points since week 4. Maybe give Cook a shot in close.

It's not even that he's running up the middle, it's that the Bills seem to literally have 1 running play. The RPO out of shotgun where the RB starts running laterally. Cook has actually done pretty damn well considering what he's given to work with. The "forward thinkers" of today's NFL don't understand just how important 4-5 yards a carry really is. This is the last time I'll say it, but I'll put it in bold because it's a fact.

THE BILLS WILL NOT WIN ANYTHING IMPORTANT AS A TEAM UNTIL THEY CHANGE THEIR GAMEPLAN

The talent on this team is off the charts good. The coaches should be embarrassed at 5-4. Just ridiculous.

 

[SoBeDad]

FWIW, James Cook's PFF is 73.3, was 78.2 in 2022 . I haven't seen most of his plays, but he hasn't seemed as explosive or elusive as I recall from last year. Remember how Chase Edmonds looked explosive with a running QB in Murray and then how he looked in MIA, DEN, and TB. I think Cook is better than Edmonds, more speed, but better served as a COP or #2 back, and yes a more diverse receiving route tree would help.

 

[Jacob's Ladder]

FWIW, James Cook's PFF is 73.3, was 78.2 in 2022 . I haven't seen most of his plays, but he hasn't seemed as explosive or elusive as I recall from last year. Remember how Chase Edmonds looked explosive with a running QB in Murray and then how he looked in MIA, DEN, and TB. I think Cook is better than Edmonds, more speed, but better served as a COP or #2 back, and yes a more diverse receiving route tree would help.

His role is different and TBH it feels like the Bills don’t feel like they need him to win.

He’s an afterthought this season and TBH his usage is tough to reconcile.

They won’t use him inside the 20 but he’s the banger that closes out games? Huh? How does that make any sense whatsoever?

They say he comes out for Murray to pass block but then Murray runs the same ineffective flat route Cook is forced to run every time they pass?

They line him up wide but won’t let him run a route?

Little to no screen usage and/or actual routes out of the backfield? Last year he looked more like a pass catching RB. This year? It’s ugly but doesn’t appear to be his fault.

The guy will never be Jon Taylor but he’s a hell of a lot better than what the Bills are allowing him to be.

 

[Bri]

This guy bugs me in FF.
Well written Jacob

 

[DeaLerZ]

FWIW, James Cook's PFF is 73.3, was 78.2 in 2022 . I haven't seen most of his plays, but he hasn't seemed as explosive or elusive as I recall from last year. Remember how Chase Edmonds looked explosive with a running QB in Murray and then how he looked in MIA, DEN, and TB. I think Cook is better than Edmonds, more speed, but better served as a COP or #2 back, and yes a more diverse receiving route tree would help.

His role is different and TBH it feels like the Bills don’t feel like they need him to win.

He’s an afterthought this season and TBH his usage is tough to reconcile.

They won’t use him inside the 20 but he’s the banger that closes out games? Huh? How does that make any sense whatsoever?

They say he comes out for Murray to pass block but then Murray runs the same ineffective flat route Cook is forced to run every time they pass?

They line him up wide but won’t let him run a route?

Little to no screen usage and/or actual routes out of the backfield? Last year he looked more like a pass catching RB. This year? It’s ugly but doesn’t appear to be his fault.

The guy will never be Jon Taylor but he’s a hell of a lot better than what the Bills are allowing him to be.

Sometimes these coaches really don't like to use their best players. I will never understand this

 

[Jacob's Ladder]

FWIW, James Cook's PFF is 73.3, was 78.2 in 2022 . I haven't seen most of his plays, but he hasn't seemed as explosive or elusive as I recall from last year. Remember how Chase Edmonds looked explosive with a running QB in Murray and then how he looked in MIA, DEN, and TB. I think Cook is better than Edmonds, more speed, but better served as a COP or #2 back, and yes a more diverse receiving route tree would help.

His role is different and TBH it feels like the Bills don’t feel like they need him to win.

He’s an afterthought this season and TBH his usage is tough to reconcile.

They won’t use him inside the 20 but he’s the banger that closes out games? Huh? How does that make any sense whatsoever?

They say he comes out for Murray to pass block but then Murray runs the same ineffective flat route Cook is forced to run every time they pass?

They line him up wide but won’t let him run a route?

Little to no screen usage and/or actual routes out of the backfield? Last year he looked more like a pass catching RB. This year? It’s ugly but doesn’t appear to be his fault.

The guy will never be Jon Taylor but he’s a hell of a lot better than what the Bills are allowing him to be.

Sometimes these coaches really don't like to use their best players. I will never understand this

Arthur Smith, "Hold my beer!"

There is a good reason there is so much turnover in NFL coaching. Most of them are rigid, unable to adapt, unwilling to challenge the status quo. Most have a plan, but if the plan fails, there is no plan B. They'll bang their head against the same wall over and over until they're relieved of their duties.

There really aren't many great head coaches in the NFL. Nepotism reigns supreme.

 

[Biabreakable]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

OK I believe you that Cook failed his assignment on these specific plays. That happens. Lots of RB fail when asked to block a defender.

I don't really think the Bills offensive design should be so dependent on a RB picking up a block in pass protection. Especially a player like Cook who could be used more as a receiving threat than he is.

Cooks yards per target are outstanding right now BTW.

Maybe because Allen likes to hold the ball and scramble around waiting for receivers to get open downfield they want a RB who can pass block more. I think that makes a bit of sense although it's going to be a really hard assignment because the RB won't know where Allen is scrambling to or where the free rushers are going to be in such a situation to actually pick them up.

In another post you said Murray did fine helping out the tackle vs Hendrickson but that the guards failed their blocks.

Well pass blocking 101 the RB is supposed to pick up the inside rush as priority over the outside rush. I assume you know this. If Murray is doing what the coaches wanted him to on these plays, it's a mistake imo. A mobile QB like Allen has a lot better chance of avoiding the outside rush than the inside rush.

I haven't watched Murray myself but I believe what others are saying as far as him not doing a good job in pass protection either.

It's totally logical to assume that the bigger player will be better than this when it comes to blocking LB and Dlinemen. However that's not necessarily true.

Regardless of who is right here (as usual it's likely a little of both) I don't think having RBs pick up pass rushers while TE are running routes is the best way to design a protection package. I note that Kincaid made a ton of receptions so must have been running a ton of routes.

They are not utilizing Cook as a dynamic receiving threat and they could be doing that. Having Murray on the field just makes their overall offense worse.

 

[Schmeabs]

I was all ready to bench him this week but now I see they are playing Denver so I am having second thoughts

 

[travdogg]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

OK I believe you that Cook failed his assignment on these specific plays. That happens. Lots of RB fail when asked to block a defender.

I don't really think the Bills offensive design should be so dependent on a RB picking up a block in pass protection. Especially a player like Cook who could be used more as a receiving threat than he is.

Cooks yards per target are outstanding right now BTW.

Maybe because Allen likes to hold the ball and scramble around waiting for receivers to get open downfield they want a RB who can pass block more. I think that makes a bit of sense although it's going to be a really hard assignment because the RB won't know where Allen is scrambling to or where the free rushers are going to be in such a situation to actually pick them up.

In another post you said Murray did fine helping out the tackle vs Hendrickson but that the guards failed their blocks.

Well pass blocking 101 the RB is supposed to pick up the inside rush as priority over the outside rush. I assume you know this. If Murray is doing what the coaches wanted him to on these plays, it's a mistake imo. A mobile QB like Allen has a lot better chance of avoiding the outside rush than the inside rush.

I haven't watched Murray myself but I believe what others are saying as far as him not doing a good job in pass protection either.

It's totally logical to assume that the bigger player will be better than this when it comes to blocking LB and Dlinemen. However that's not necessarily true.

Regardless of who is right here (as usual it's likely a little of both) I don't think having RBs pick up pass rushers while TE are running routes is the best way to design a protection package. I note that Kincaid made a ton of receptions so must have been running a ton of routes.

They are not utilizing Cook as a dynamic receiving threat and they could be doing that. Having Murray on the field just makes their overall offense worse.

I mostly agree with this. I want to be clear, I'm not arguing Murray is a better RB than Cook, I am arguing he's a better pass protecter (and PFF agrees as Murray is 10th, and Cook is 58th out of 59 qualifiers) and that's it. Other than that I'm just trying to convey what the Bills coaches might be thinking. The Bills were clearly very worried about Hendrickson so even though the interior was losing, they continued to have Murray help outside.

I don't think yards per target is a particularly good stat. Especially as he's not heavily targeted so when he is, its often when he's wide open. I agree Cook could probably be doing more in the passing game, but I think he's clearly not as good a use of targets as Kincaid, who looks like he could be on the Ertz/Andrews spectrum.

I do think Fournette could throw an even bigger monkey wrench into all of this, as he's historically (can't be sure with a guy who was a street FA) been an asset in the passing game. Its possible he could take Murray's role+, or it could become a 3-man RBBC, which Cook still leads, but then fantasy wise has even less margin for error, as the best rusher on the team is probably still Josh Allen, at least in the redzone.

 

[efactor]

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Murray was not good in pass protection last night. He was bad and looked disinterested. Truly a minimalist is that area.

He did a very good job last night helping Dawkins against a guy among the NFL leaders in sacks. It was the 2 guards who gave up most of the pressure, and the Bills staff decided that was less of a threat than Hendrickson was.

I have no stake in Cook, Murray or Fournette, I would prefer if Murray wasn't out there so much too. But Cook has done zero to earn more snaps, and I don't see any of Buffalo's losses having anything to do with their RB usage, or really the offense in general other than NY in week 1. The Bills issue is injuries have made them a bad defense, and they have been getting crushed in time of possession, not just by the Bengals, but even NE.

Personally, I wouldn't mind more max protect with just 3 or 4 guys in routes for Buffalo. Or a bigger emphasis on the hurry up offense they have done at the start of each of the last 2 games.

Singletary and Cook was a better combo last year than Cook and Murray. In 2022, Singletary (11/13) and Allen (13/14) were money on "and one." Cook is better as a complimentary back. I think they hoped that Harris or Murray would've been a bigger and better version of Singletary.

Also, scoring down in the NFL ... with a few exceptions - Stroud and Minshew led teams! Fans in Miami, SF, and KC are second-guessing their offensive play calling. Defenses are catching up some.

Every time Buffalo uses a QB sneak its as effective as it is for Philly, they just attempt it less. I don't know why. That one time Allen fumbled last year against the Vikings is the only time it didn't work.

Man, I disagree with this entire last page practically.

Murray is a good pass blocker, he was good last night too. Cook wasn't bad last night, but his pass blocking is what got Josh Allen's shoulder hurt in the first place. Its been a liability for most of the season. I thought Allen played well last night. Not his fault Burrow was lights out, and the Bills D couldn't get them off the field.

Fantasy wise, I think James Cook is around RB25 or so. He's a flex, but not somebody I'd want to rely on. He's a boom/bust runner, who broke some big plays against the Raiders and Commanders (in blowout wins, back when the defense was healthy) but has otherwise been mostly ineffective. I won't disagree that Cook is a better runner than Murray, but saying Murray does nothing better is obviously not true.

Yeah, I also disagree Cook is a comparable pass-blocker. Cook would be in there if he was. I’m sure they get graded on that skill by the coaching staff so I have to seriously question if he’s a better pass-blocker than Murray or even comparable, game in & game out.

For one, Cook is tiny. Not sure what happened on the play earlier in the season when Allen got hurt, but it wouldn’t take much to run him over, even on a safety blitz, much less by a huge DL.

A lot of the other stuff I agree with, but let’s not pretend he’s a feature back-type. Cook seems to get swallowed up rather easily at times.

It was a blitzing LB (Okereke or McFadden for NYG) and Cook was barely a speedbump. He also had one in the same game where he whiffed completely, and another one that got Allen decked by a blitzing DB (in the NE game) where he went the wrong way, and somebody (a coach) was screaming at him when he came to the sideline.

OK I believe you that Cook failed his assignment on these specific plays. That happens. Lots of RB fail when asked to block a defender.

I don't really think the Bills offensive design should be so dependent on a RB picking up a block in pass protection. Especially a player like Cook who could be used more as a receiving threat than he is.

Cooks yards per target are outstanding right now BTW.

Maybe because Allen likes to hold the ball and scramble around waiting for receivers to get open downfield they want a RB who can pass block more. I think that makes a bit of sense although it's going to be a really hard assignment because the RB won't know where Allen is scrambling to or where the free rushers are going to be in such a situation to actually pick them up.

In another post you said Murray did fine helping out the tackle vs Hendrickson but that the guards failed their blocks.

Well pass blocking 101 the RB is supposed to pick up the inside rush as priority over the outside rush. I assume you know this. If Murray is doing what the coaches wanted him to on these plays, it's a mistake imo. A mobile QB like Allen has a lot better chance of avoiding the outside rush than the inside rush.

I haven't watched Murray myself but I believe what others are saying as far as him not doing a good job in pass protection either.

It's totally logical to assume that the bigger player will be better than this when it comes to blocking LB and Dlinemen. However that's not necessarily true.

Regardless of who is right here (as usual it's likely a little of both) I don't think having RBs pick up pass rushers while TE are running routes is the best way to design a protection package. I note that Kincaid made a ton of receptions so must have been running a ton of routes.

They are not utilizing Cook as a dynamic receiving threat and they could be doing that. Having Murray on the field just makes their overall offense worse.

I mostly agree with this. I want to be clear, I'm not arguing Murray is a better RB than Cook, I am arguing he's a better pass protecter (and PFF agrees as Murray is 10th, and Cook is 58th out of 59 qualifiers) and that's it. Other than that I'm just trying to convey what the Bills coaches might be thinking. The Bills were clearly very worried about Hendrickson so even though the interior was losing, they continued to have Murray help outside.

I don't think yards per target is a particularly good stat. Especially as he's not heavily targeted so when he is, its often when he's wide open. I agree Cook could probably be doing more in the passing game, but I think he's clearly not as good a use of targets as Kincaid, who looks like he could be on the Ertz/Andrews spectrum.

I do think Fournette could throw an even bigger monkey wrench into all of this, as he's historically (can't be sure with a guy who was a street FA) been an asset in the passing game. Its possible he could take Murray's role+, or it could become a 3-man RBBC, which Cook still leads, but then fantasy wise has even less margin for error, as the best rusher on the team is probably still Josh Allen, at least in the redzone.

PFF is a joke if they have Murray ranked 10 in pass blocking. He is terrible

 

[Jacob's Ladder]

Bottom line, with limited reps, Cook is quietly 11th in the league in rush yards (with 4.7/carry) amongst RBs and 9th in the league in receiving yards amongst RBs. He's accounted for more than 700 yards on offense. His season stat line looks eerily similar to Bijan Robinson who has accounted for 714 yards to Cook's 717. Bijan has accounted for 3 TDs while Cook only has 2.

Considering Cook's usage, that's great production but it could be oh so much better. Cook has converted 22/26 targets. Cook is on pace to rush for just under 1,000 yards while almost hitting 400 in receiving. He's being used as a closer but rarely sees the field inside the red zone. That makes zero sense to any rational human that understands football.

Cook's coming off the field for Latavius Murray in key situations, who has rushed 42 times for 147 yards and only 2 TDs. 33% of Murray's carries have come inside the red zone, again, only producing 2 rushing TDs and 25 yards on those 14 carries. Latavius has seen 9 carries inside the 5, yielding 8 yards and 2 TDs. Murray is a slug, and a drive killer to boot.

The whole situation reminds me a lot of Atlanta, with the key difference being that Allgeier is actually an effective NFL running back.

If you can't see giving Cook more touches would improve this offense, you're not watching the games. Bills are too one-dimensional, and they need to get better. Josh Allen is just as one-dimensional, and has to stop trying to win the game on every play. Mixing it up a bit more and feeding your best, most explosive RB just makes sense.

 

[Biabreakable]

I think pff pass blocking grades are a bit messed up because they just look at if the player wins the rep instead of looking at if they blocked the right player.

I have heard their grades cited in other circumstances regarding RB that do not seem right to me or coaches at all.

Incidentally I was listening to Mike Boone and another former offensive lineman who were doing a podcast with one of the Vikings radio guys.

The topic was about the Vikings defense and how do offensive linemen deal with it. A lot of what they talk about is blocking assignments and adjustments.

Anyhow the interviewer brings up a pff grade and they both laughed pretty hard and Boone sarcastically says "yeah tell me more about what the media has to say about this".

Not the only time I have heard Boone react this way to pff.

They clearly think it's a joke and that pff does not know what they are talking about.

 

[efactor]

Bottom line, with limited reps, Cook is quietly 11th in the league in rush yards (with 4.7/carry) amongst RBs and 9th in the league in receiving yards amongst RBs. He's accounted for more than 700 yards on offense. His season stat line looks eerily similar to Bijan Robinson who has accounted for 714 yards to Cook's 717. Bijan has accounted for 3 TDs while Cook only has 2.

Considering Cook's usage, that's great production but it could be oh so much better. Cook has converted 22/26 targets. Cook is on pace to rush for just under 1,000 yards while almost hitting 400 in receiving. He's being used as a closer but rarely sees the field inside the red zone. That makes zero sense to any rational human that understands football.

Cook's coming off the field for Latavius Murray in key situations, who has rushed 42 times for 147 yards and only 2 TDs. 33% of Murray's carries have come inside the red zone, again, only producing 2 rushing TDs and 25 yards on those 14 carries. Latavius has seen 9 carries inside the 5, yielding 8 yards and 2 TDs. Murray is a slug, and a drive killer to boot.

The whole situation reminds me a lot of Atlanta, with the key difference being that Allgeier is actually an effective NFL running back.

If you can't see giving Cook more touches would improve this offense, you're not watching the games. Bills are too one-dimensional, and they need to get better. Josh Allen is just as one-dimensional, and has to stop trying to win the game on every play. Mixing it up a bit more and feeding your best, most explosive RB just makes sense.

Good post. Amazing that people can't see that he has actually been good with the opportunity he has.

Was listening to CBS Podcast this morning and Jaime Eisenberg was talking about how Leonard Fournette could step in to a decent role because James Cook "isn't getting it done". I usually like his takes, but surprised he was that far off base. Fortunately Aizer stepped up and made the argument that Cook has been good with the opportunities he has had.

Perception is a funny thing. A lot of people rave about Travis Etienne and talk down about Cook. The difference is that the Jags give him a bigger workload and he stays in the game most of the time in the red zone. Coincidently, he has 7 rushing TDs to Cooks 1. Averaging 3.9 a carry compared to 4.7 for Cook. I like ETN but if he were taken out in the red zone like Cook is, the perception of him would radically change. Also not coincidence IMO that the Jags are 6-2 and the Bills are 5-4 despite having much more talent.

Edit to add on ETN. His YPC is down from 5.1 in 2022 to 3.9 this year, but his volume is up and he already has 7 rushing TDs compared to 5 the entire season in 2022.

 

[Biabreakable]

As far as yards per target goes it is far from a perfect stat. It is similar to yards per carry in that there are a lot of problems with it because of the small sample size.

That said the reason I like the stat is because it combines catch rate and yards per reception. Which are stats that can be useful, but not as useful as yards per target which is combining those two things. I think its at least better than either of those stats independently. It is a stat that can be compared to all other players across the NFL as at least some way to judge how well they are doing relative to other players at their position, and you could compare it across positions as well, although there are some issues with that due to the different types of routes players at other positions are running, but ypt at least accounts for that somewhat as the difference in air yards between the players will be offset somewhat by the frequency that they make receptions.

One way to try to account for small sample size is to look at players yards per target over multiple seasons. Just as I would look at yards per carry over multiple seasons. Doing this at least allows one to figure out what the average of this stat is across all players, and across multiple seasons. A good career yards per target for a RB is about 6 and the average is about 5.

A reception is always being affected to some degree by the QB and the offensive scheme the players team is using as well, which is independent of the players ability, but there is no way I know of to really get around that. They are interconnected.

Cook currently has 8.1 yards per target. This is similar to Christian McCaffreys 7.9 yards per target.

For some context McCaffrey who is one of the best receiving RB ever has a career ypt of 6.9 Marshall Faulks career ypt is 6.8 David Johnsons career ypt is 7. Austin Ecklers career ypt is 7.2 Alvin Kamaras career ypt is 6.7

James Cooks career yards per target right now is 6.7 this is still with only 58 total targets which is not enough to compare fairly with these other highly prolific receiving RB but at least it is in a similar area that makes me say he is good at this and I would like to see if that would remain true if he were targeted more.

 

[Biabreakable]

Bottom line, with limited reps, Cook is quietly 11th in the league in rush yards (with 4.7/carry) amongst RBs and 9th in the league in receiving yards amongst RBs. He's accounted for more than 700 yards on offense. His season stat line looks eerily similar to Bijan Robinson who has accounted for 714 yards to Cook's 717. Bijan has accounted for 3 TDs while Cook only has 2.

Considering Cook's usage, that's great production but it could be oh so much better. Cook has converted 22/26 targets. Cook is on pace to rush for just under 1,000 yards while almost hitting 400 in receiving. He's being used as a closer but rarely sees the field inside the red zone. That makes zero sense to any rational human that understands football.

Cook's coming off the field for Latavius Murray in key situations, who has rushed 42 times for 147 yards and only 2 TDs. 33% of Murray's carries have come inside the red zone, again, only producing 2 rushing TDs and 25 yards on those 14 carries. Latavius has seen 9 carries inside the 5, yielding 8 yards and 2 TDs. Murray is a slug, and a drive killer to boot.

The whole situation reminds me a lot of Atlanta, with the key difference being that Allgeier is actually an effective NFL running back.

If you can't see giving Cook more touches would improve this offense, you're not watching the games. Bills are too one-dimensional, and they need to get better. Josh Allen is just as one-dimensional, and has to stop trying to win the game on every play. Mixing it up a bit more and feeding your best, most explosive RB just makes sense.

Good post. Amazing that people can't see that he has actually been good with the opportunity he has.

Was listening to CBS Podcast this morning and Jaime Eisenberg was talking about how Leonard Fournette could step in to a decent role because James Cook "isn't getting it done". I usually like his takes, but surprised he was that far off base. Fortunately Aizer stepped up and made the argument that Cook has been good with the opportunities he has had.

Perception is a funny thing. A lot of people rave about Travis Etienne and talk down about Cook. The difference is that the Jags give him a bigger workload and he stays in the game most of the time in the red zone. Coincidently, he has 7 rushing TDs to Cooks 1. Averaging 3.9 a carry compared to 4.7 for Cook. I like ETN but if he were taken out in the red zone like Cook is, the perception of him would radically change. Also not coincidence IMO that the Jags are 6-2 and the Bills are 5-4 despite having much more talent.

Edit to add on ETN. His YPC is down from 5.1 in 2022 to 3.9 this year, but his volume is up and he already has 7 rushing TDs compared to 5 the entire season in 2022.

I sort of talked about this in my previous post in regards to yards per target. With yards per carry the average is about 4.2 and ETN career ypc so far is 4.6 this stat is affected somewhat by goal line carries or other short yardage situations is likely why ETNs current ypc is 3.9 but I would expect this to increase over the course of a full season and it will likely be something similar to what his career ypc is right now.

You really want about 3 seasons worth of opportunities before judging metrics like this. But yeah you can only work with what you have. When you look at a players career arc they will have some peak seasons where these metrics are very high and then those numbers balance out towards an career average that includes less efficient rookie season numbers and numbers declining towards the end of a players career. Maybe an injury hampered season or two thrown in there that drags the career average down.

Anyhow your point is completely valid that Cook has the efficiency metrics that makes one say use that player more and see if they can continue such efficiency or not.

 

[cross1420]

This guy has so much talent but the coaching seems to want to keep him fresh for the playoff push. W/ Brady making the play calls, looks like they might be righting the ship now.

 

[Ilov80s]

This guy has so much talent but the coaching seems to want to keep him fresh for the playoff push. W/ Brady making the play calls, looks like they might be righting the ship now.

They might want to check the NFL standings, the playoff push is happening now.

 

[kface]

This guy has so much talent but the coaching seems to want to keep him fresh for the playoff push. W/ Brady making the play calls, looks like they might be righting the ship now.

They might want to check the NFL standings, the playoff push is happening now.

Drop the pass and had a weak run out of bounds 1 yard short of a first down....not a good look

 

[Sunday Gravy]

This guy has so much talent but the coaching seems to want to keep him fresh for the playoff push. W/ Brady making the play calls, looks like they might be righting the ship now.

They might want to check the NFL standings, the playoff push is happening now.

Drop the pass and had a weak run out of bounds 1 yard short of a first down....not a good look

That drop was horrible

 

[BetaParticle]

started Khalil Herbert against a top 8 run defense over Cook against the #1 run defense. luckily, i could still win this week benching Herbert.

 

[jobarules]

This guy has so much talent but the coaching seems to want to keep him fresh for the playoff push. W/ Brady making the play calls, looks like they might be righting the ship now.

Lmao at saving him for playoff push

 

[irish eyes]

Useless in non ppr unfortunately. Well useless non ppr as well. Such a disappointment

 

[GPS]

13 half ppr points is better than a sharp stick in your eye.

 

[TampaMike19]

Looking locked and loaded ROS especially with the receiving. But man they were rotating backs like crazy

 

[Jacob's Ladder]

James Cook haters really need to rethink their stance. This kid is a star. The only thing holding him back is his coaching staff, but it's nice to see the increased usage after Dorsey's firing. As good as Allen is, this team is only going to go as far as Cook takes them. He's the missing link they've been looking for, I'm just still not sure if the Bills coaches understand this.

 

[Max55]

He looked electric every time he touched the ball today.

1st half: 5-83-1 TD receiving
2nd half: zero receiving

I don’t get it unless KC made an adjustment.

 

[Biabreakable]

James Cook haters really need to rethink their stance. This kid is a star. The only thing holding him back is his coaching staff, but it's nice to see the increased usage after Dorsey's firing. As good as Allen is, this team is only going to go as far as Cook takes them. He's the missing link they've been looking for, I'm just still not sure if the Bills coaches understand this.

The OC got fired?

Hallelujah!!

(I am still not sure Allen isn't part of the problem though).

 

[Banger]

He looked electric every time he touched the ball today.

1st half: 5-83-1 TD receiving
2nd half: zero receiving

I don’t get it unless KC made an adjustment.

You still throw him the ball at least once

 

[Banger]

James Cook haters really need to rethink their stance. This kid is a star. The only thing holding him back is his coaching staff, but it's nice to see the increased usage after Dorsey's firing. As good as Allen is, this team is only going to go as far as Cook takes them. He's the missing link they've been looking for, I'm just still not sure if the Bills coaches understand this.

He’s doing ok for being less than 200 pounds…where’s that guy?

 

[Jacob's Ladder]

James Cook haters really need to rethink their stance. This kid is a star. The only thing holding him back is his coaching staff, but it's nice to see the increased usage after Dorsey's firing. As good as Allen is, this team is only going to go as far as Cook takes them. He's the missing link they've been looking for, I'm just still not sure if the Bills coaches understand this.

The OC got fired?

Hallelujah!!

(I am still not sure Allen isn't part of the problem though).

I wonder if the Vikings regret going after Dobbs. I'm not sure what the infatuation was to begin with, but he just about got your franchise all time great WR killed.

I’m sure they do regret it, but they took a shot on a guy that flashed when their sturdy QB was lost for the season. Kind of like a bad fantasy move, it didn’t pay off and yeah it’s regrettable, but at least they took a shot.

Meanwhile I’m thinking Dobbs should really try to patch things up with Will Smith and just leave the NFL behind.

Got fired 3 weeks ago and Cook had had at least 100 yards from scrimmage in every game since.

Allen does make sone terrible plays though, made another INT today that let KC back into the game. Still though, a lot of that can be helped with better play calling. As someone else pointed out, Cook was the first read on several passing plays in the first half but I didn’t see it once in the second half.

It’s like the Bills have ADHD and can’t just stick to the script regardless of how successful it is, simply because they get bored or impatient. They need to just get out of their own way and play smart football for four quarters. Not a lot of teams could beat them if they stick to the script and forget about individual accolades.

 

[EthnicFury]

lol I almost came in here and posted “looks like they spent the bye figuring out he’s a prototypical receiving back” and then they forgot again

 

[BlackCrowes]

Dropped a TD :(

 

[Down Under]

Dropped a TD :(

But did you see the TD he caught? Nice.

 

[Ilov80s]

Just scored again, he’s one of the hottest players in fantasy

 

[The Duff Man]

The next time someone tells you the OC doesn’t matter much pull out the data on James Cook. Good lord.

 

[jobarules]

Now we know why Dorsey got fired

 

[Ironman2131]

I'm desperately trying to survive getting Cooked today.

 

[TommyKramer9]

Traded Cook straight up for Pollard. Thought I got the better end of the deal. The next day Dorsey got fired and I clearly got screwed

 

[rockaction]

You guys think you did badly? I drafted Skyy Moore over this guy in a rookie draft and regretted it almost instantly. To the point where I almost sent out an offer of Skyy and a second for Cook. I wish I had done that then.

 

[Sunday Gravy]

He is a lot of fun to watch.

 

[efactor]

Sooooooooo good. Love the way he is being used by the new OC. Now if they just realize that he is way better than Murray on the goal line too, top 5 RB