Bills RB James Cook snubbed from NFL Top 20 running backs ranking

There's no way a player with over 1,500 scrimmage yards would be snubbed, right?

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook (4) celebrates his 24-yard touchdown run against the Cowboys. / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

When ranking NFL running backs, there’s generally a consensus top two: San Francisco 49ers All-Pro Christian McCaffery and now Baltimore Ravens ballcarrier Derrick Henry. The rest of the top 10 usually fluctuates, however, as arguments can be made for plenty of talented running backs. These discussions should include Buffalo Bills running back James Cook, who emerged as one of the NFL's most promising young backs in his sophomore season. Yet, Garrett Podell of CBS Sports disagrees; in his recent article ranking the top 20 running backs in the NFL, Cook is omitted entirely, receiving only an honorable mention.

Yes, Cook—who finished sixth in the NFL in scrimmage yards last year—is completely absent from the ranking. He tallied 1,567 total yards and six touchdowns in the 2023 season, of those 1,567 total yards, 1,122 of them were on the ground, which was the fourth most in the NFL. 

James Cook shared this hype video on his Instagram. Dude is ready to go. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/3wYPoQRcNk

— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) December 23, 2023

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There are plenty of talented backs who comprise the list, and it's fine to prefer other rushers to Cook—that said, entirely omitting the player who finished fourth in rushing yards a season ago (and sixth in scrimmage yards!) from a top 20 running back ranking seems like an egregious oversight. This isn’t even to mention Cook’s ability as a pass-catcher—he had the eighth-most receiving yards out of the backfield in the 2023 season with 445. He was also tied for fourth in terms of receiving touchdowns for running backs,

Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports / Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

If there is a potential knock on Cook, it's that he has a slight fumbling problem; according to ESPN, Cook had three fumbles last season (losing just one). He isn’t an elite running back yet, but not having him as one of the top 20 running backs in the NFL is simply asinine. Perhaps he’ll crack next year’s rendition of the list if he finishes in the top five in scrimmage yards in the 2024 NFL season.

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