James Cook is starting to find his way as Buffalo Bills push for AFC East title

ORCHARD PARK - No one should be all that surprised by the tepid start to rookie running back James Cook’s NFL career, and that includes the Buffalo Bills.

When general manager Brandon Beane picked Cook in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, he knew two things: Cook was going to need time to assimilate to the pro game and, while he was doing that, the Bills could rely on fourth-year pro Devin Singletary to carry the burden in the run game until Cook was ready to make a key contribution.

That’s because even though Cook played at the highest level in college football for Georgia in the powerhouse SEC, and he helped the Bulldogs win the national championship last January, he really didn’t play that much during his four years between the hedges in Athens.

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The little brother of Vikings star running back Dalvin Cook played in 50 games but started only six, and he touched the ball a mere 297 times - 230 carries for 1,503 yards rushing, and 67 catches for 730 yards receiving with 20 total touchdowns.

Contrast that to the resumes of the only two backs in the draft selected before Buffalo grabbed Cook at No. 63 overall, also both in the second round.

The Jets took Virginia’s Breece Hall at No. 36 after a career that included 718 carries for 3,941 yards, plus 82 catches for 734 yards and 56 total TDs in just 36 games, 30 starts. And the Seahawks picked Kenneth Walker III at No. 41 overall after he carried 480 times for 2,794 yards, caught 19 passes for 136 yards, scored 36 TDs and started 12 of 32 games for Michigan State.

Not surprisingly, Hall and Walker started their rookie seasons contributing immediately to their NFL teams. Before he suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 7, Hall was just beginning to emerge as a dynamic threat for New York as he was averaging 5.8 yards per carry and had 19 receptions for 218 yards.

Walker is one of the frontrunners for the NFL rookie of the year award as he has rushed for 649 yards, caught 19 passes for 116 yards, and scored nine touchdowns for the surprising Seahawks.

As for Cook, he has been on the field for only 19% of Buffalo’s offensive snaps, but we may have seen the precursor to the passing of the torch from Singletary to Cook in Buffalo’s 24-10 victory over the Patriots.

At Gillette Stadium, Cook played only one fewer snap than Singletary - by far his biggest snap share of the season - and he compiled 64 yards rushing and 41 receiving. It was his best game to date, and moving forward we may see the snap count between Cook and Singletary remain close to a 50-50 split.

“Felt good, and every time my number’s called I just try to make a play for my team,” the understated Cook said. “I hope (playing time will increase) but if it don’t, every opportunity I get I’m gonna just keep making it better and taking advantage of it.”

Offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey said there wasn’t a concerted plan to get Cook more involved in New England, it was just how the game played out.

“You set your plan up going into the week and then it’s just kind of the way the game flows and the way things unfolded,” he said.

OK, there’s truth in that, but more than anything, Cook is starting to get things figured out, he’s going to be here for the next four years, and Singletary can leave via free agency at the end of 2022. Dorsey knows he has to start leaning more on Cook, and the New England game might eventually be looked back on as the start of the passing of the torch from Singletary to Cook as the primary back.

“I think just every week you see him continually get more and more comfortable,” Dorsey said. “I think he did a great job catching balls out of the backfield, getting north and south and creating opportunities for (receiving yards after catch) just by being available and by quick turning and getting north. He’s been able to do a lot of different things for us that complete backs need to do in this league. He’s continued to grow if you just kind of see that as the year goes on.”

For all of Josh Allen’s wizardry in that quarter-billion dollar right arm of his, as the Bills try to win a third straight AFC East division title, Allen is going to need help from the running game, and that doesn’t mean Allen taking off from the pocket on mad dash scrambles when passing plays break down.

It means that when he hands the ball to Singletary and Cook, they have to make positive plays to lessen the burden on Allen, especially now that the Bills won’t be playing indoors in Detroit every week and have to venture out into the cold, wind, and possibly snow.

“Just as a rookie, the league is an adjustment and I think he’s taking the coaching well, understands the system, understands what we’re trying to get done in the run game and the pass game with Josh and I think he’s effectively taking advantage of his opportunities,” center Mitch Morse said. “He’s hitting the holes hard. And he’s getting chunk plays as well as just picking up three or four yards at a time which puts us in advantageous positions as an offense.”

Cook has only 323 yards rushing, but 86 came against the Browns and 64 against the Patriots (in between against the Lions he was mysteriously ignored). It will be interesting to see Cook’s usage Sunday when the Bills host the Jets in a key AFC East showdown. Will he be able to build on the New England game, or will Singletary regain the bulk of the snaps?

“It’s not any less confidence in Motor, but just putting good football players on the field,” coach Sean McDermott said of Cook’s bigger role against the Patriots. “He continues to grow, he continues to improve every week via his practice and then in the game as well. And sometimes it’s just opportunities … sometimes that happens where you just get going and you get more touches.”

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This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: James Cook may be ready for bigger role in Buffalo Bills offense