Former All-Pro RB says Bills star James Cook is one of his ‘favorite backs’

Former Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy described current Bills rusher James Cook as one of his favorite backs in the NFL.

Kyle Silagyi | Nov 22, 2024

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James Cook was widely viewed as a complementary player in the lead-up to the 2022 NFL Draft, a potentially impactful receiving back who could thrive in situational roles but would likely never develop into a bell-cow.

Fast forward to his third professional season, and he’s one of the league’s premier backs. He’s coming off a breakout 2023 campaign in which he finished fourth in the NFL in rushing yards (1,122) and sixth in scrimmage yards (1,567), and he’s picked up right where he left off in 2024, picking up 778 scrimmage yards through 11 games. After scoring only two touchdowns on the ground in each of his first two seasons, he’s seen his scoring blossom this year, currently sitting at third in the league in rushing touchdowns with 10.

He’s on pace to conclude the campaign with 1,200 scrimmage yards and 17 touchdowns, unequivocally placing him among the top players in the league at his position. Former All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy is perhaps a bit taken aback by Cook’s recent excellence, stating during a recent appearance on the Buffalo Plus podcast that he’s known the rusher for some time and never suspected that he would develop into this caliber of player.

“James Cook. Yo, that brother can play,” McCoy said. “It’s funny because I know his brother very well. I live in Miami, they’re from Miami, so we all train together, but training with him, he was quiet, I’m loud, and he’s kind of in the back and he didn’t really say much. Even watching him train, he looked okay. Just being honest, he looked alright. I didn’t see anything that, like, stood out to me. I watched him in college, I thought he was good, nothing more though. I thought he was okay.

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“And now I see him in the NFL, like yo, explosive, strong, quick, elusive, good hands, good hands, good vision, great patience, and he competes. One thing I thought, I didn’t think he competed a lot just watching him, he was like the third-string guy at Georgia. Some guys are mad about not playing and other guys are like, ‘Okay, it is what it is.’ I didn’t really know him so I didn’t really judge him, but the outside looking in, I thought these things, and now what I see now, it’s like two different people. Whatever turned that light on, he looks different. He’s one of my favorite backs to watch, a lot of talent.”

McCoy was the last Buffalo running back to rush for 10 or more touchdowns in a single year, reaching paydirt on the ground on 13 occasions in the 2016 season. Cook is on pace to top that total, and with six additional rushing scores, he would tie O.J. Simpson for the franchise record for most rushing touchdowns in a single season (16 in 1975).

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