James Cook News

The free-agent acquisition 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 TDs, 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's exit, especially in early-down and short-yardage situations. Even so, Cook (listed at 5-foot-11, 190 pounds) 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.

"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 in two weeks, 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.

The second-round rookie worked his way into almost an even timeshare with starter Devin Singletary by the end of the campaign, and while Cook never really exploded with a giant game, he proved to be useable for those needing to count on modest production from a deeper RB spot. Singletary is an unrestricted free agent, plus the Bills do not expect to have much cap room this offseason, so if Cook's teammate leaves for greener pastures, it could really open things up for him in his second campaign. That said, rostering any Bills running back always comes with the disclosure that Josh Allen is going to eat up some of that position's typical production.

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.

Cook was far 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. Cook and Singletary will likely continue to split carries in the wild-card round against the Dolphins.

The 99 rushing yards and the 108 scrimmage yards are career highs for the rookie, who continues to play a nice Robin role 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 far as No. 2 running backs go. He'll continue to see regular touches, as newcomer Nyheim Hines barely gets looks in the regular game plan.