James Cook, if the training camp hype is to be believed, will be Buffalo’s most productive running back. But I am leery. He wasn’t a full-time back at Georgia, and he doesn’t have the build of a typical starting running back.
Cook weighs only 190 pounds. He’s a smaller version of his older brother (Dalvin Cook). Sharing time with Zamir White, he ran for only 728 yards in 15 games his final season at Georgia.
Cook had a credible rookie season with the Bills, averaging 5.7 yards per carry, but he didn’t play all that much. The team started Devin Singletary for the bulk of the season. When they went to more of a one-two punch backfield late in the year, Cook averaged 43 rushing and 10 receiving yards in his final seven games (including the playoffs), with 3 TDs.
Now Ken Dorsey is talking about Cook possibly being (and these are his words) “an every-down back.” Said the offensive coordinator last week: “I think we’re really excited about him and what he can do.”
That’s easy to say when guys are running around in shorts in August. It will be harder to implement over the grind of a 17-game season. In the last 20 years, only three backs weighing 190 pounds or less have run for at least 600 yards in a season. Warrick Dunn (six times), Phillip Lindsay (twice) and Darren Sproles (once).
Note that Cook not only weighs just 190, he’s also 5-foot-11, with a leaner build than those guys.
I expect Cook will be Buffalo’s starting running back and busiest guy. But I imagine we’ll also see plenty of somebody bigger. They signed Damien Harris and Latavius Murray in the offseason.
Below see the 15 seasons in the 32-team era in which a running back weighing 190 pounds or less than for at least 500 yards in a season. It’s not a long list.
| SMALLER BACKS RUNNING FOR AT LEAST 500 YARDS (2002-) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Ht | Wt | Att | Yds | Y/A | TD |
| 2005 | Warrick Dunn, Atl. | 5-9 | 180 | 280 | 1,416 | 5.1 | 3 |
| 2006 | Warrick Dunn, Atl. | 5-9 | 180 | 286 | 1,140 | 4.0 | 4 |
| 2004 | Warrick Dunn, Atl. | 5-9 | 180 | 265 | 1,106 | 4.2 | 9 |
| 2018 | Phillip Lindsay, Den. | 5-8 | 190 | 192 | 1,037 | 5.4 | 9 |
| 2019 | Phillip Lindsay, Den. | 5-8 | 190 | 224 | 1,011 | 4.5 | 7 |
| 2002 | Charlie Garner, Oak. | 5-10 | 190 | 182 | 962 | 5.3 | 7 |
| 2002 | Warrick Dunn, Atl. | 5-9 | 180 | 230 | 927 | 4.0 | 7 |
| 2008 | Warrick Dunn, T.B. | 5-9 | 180 | 186 | 786 | 4.2 | 2 |
| 2007 | Warrick Dunn, Atl. | 5-9 | 180 | 227 | 720 | 3.2 | 4 |
| 2003 | Warrick Dunn, Atl. | 5-9 | 180 | 125 | 672 | 5.4 | 3 |
| 2011 | Darren Sproles, N.O. | 5-6 | 190 | 87 | 603 | 6.9 | 2 |
| 2010 | Jahvid Best, Det. | 5-9 | 190 | 171 | 555 | 3.2 | 4 |
| 2003 | Charlie Garner, Oak. | 5-10 | 190 | 120 | 553 | 4.6 | 3 |
| 2022 | James Cook, Buff. | 5-11 | 190 | 89 | 507 | 5.7 | 2 |
| 2020 | Phillip Lindsay, Den. | 5-8 | 190 | 118 | 502 | 4.3 | 1 |
Statistics compiled using search tools at Pro-Football-Reference.com
—Ian Allan