James Cook’s Ball Security Concerns

Despite ranking third in the league for rushing yards, James Cook cannot afford to take his focus off the most critical aspect of his role with the Bills: securing the football.

With 532 rushing yards across five games this season, Cook has already fumbled the ball four times. This issue is something that head coach Joe Brady emphasizes needs to be addressed quickly.

These four fumbles currently tie Cook with Cam Skattebo of the Giants for the most among running backs in the league.

In a video conference after the Bills’ dramatic Monday night victory over the Rams, Brady hinted that there might be “consequences” if the turnover trend continues.

“He’s doing a lot of great things when running the football,” Brady remarked. “But putting the ball on the ground just negates all of that positive work. I have a lot of confidence in him, which is why I keep putting him back out there. However, there have to be consequences for putting negative plays out there.”

Cook lost the ball twice during the game against the Rams, including a critical fumble in overtime. Luckily for the Bills, it didn’t lead to a loss since they blocked the potential winning field goal and scored one themselves later. However, Pro Football Focus has not been kind to Cook this season, ranking him as the 25th-best running back out of 44.

Brady cautioned, “This could cost us games. It nearly did this time. Just because we won, we can’t lose sight of that. It has to get better, or he might see a reduction in carries.”

Cook, who earned Pro Bowl selections in the last three seasons, experienced his worst year last season, fumbling six times after four the year before. He led the league with 1,621 rushing yards last year and is on track to surpass the 1,000-yard mark for the fourth consecutive season.

If Cook does lose carries, Ray Davis and Ty Johnson are next on the depth chart and could see increased playtime. However, due to quarterback Josh Allen’s capability to run and Cook being firmly established as the team’s top running back, neither has had more than four attempts this season.

Ultimately, despite the fumble worries, the Bills currently sit atop the AFC East with a solid 4-1 record.