James Cook remains central to Buffalo’s rushing attack, but Bills coach Joe Brady made clear Tuesday that the running back’s ball-security problems could eventually reduce his workload.
Cook put the ball on the ground twice during Buffalo’s 37-34 Monday victory over the Los Angeles Rams, with one of those fumbles recovered by Los Angeles. The performance lifted his season total to four fumbles and gave him 11 since the beginning of the 2025 campaign, playoffs included.
That contrast has created a difficult decision for Buffalo. Cook has been the NFL’s most productive rusher across that span, with 245 more rushing yards than the next player, yet no non-quarterback has fumbled more often.
Overtime turnover nearly changes result
- Cook lost possession roughly two minutes into overtime, just outside the Rams’ red zone, ending a Buffalo drive that appeared capable of producing the go-ahead points.
- The turnover gave Los Angeles a chance to win with any score on its next possession.
- Edge rusher Greg Rousseau then blocked what would have been a game-winning Rams field-goal attempt.
- Brady returned to Cook immediately afterward, calling his number on the first Buffalo offensive snap following Rousseau’s block.
- Cook had two carries for three yards on the game-winning drive, though Buffalo did not rely on him with the game in its final moments.
Brady said Cook’s effectiveness as a runner has not been overlooked, and the coach’s immediate decision to put him back on the field reflected his confidence. But he stressed that the turnovers cannot be excused simply because the Bills escaped with a win.
“He is doing a lot of great things when he runs the ball,” Brady said. “But when the ball comes out, it wipes away the good. I believe in him, which is why he went back in. Still, there has to be accountability when negative plays keep happening.”
Brady added that repeated fumbles could cost Buffalo games and said Cook’s carries would decline if the problem does not improve.
Late-game decision and Brady’s hindsight
Buffalo had a second-and-10 at the Los Angeles 27-yard line after the two-minute warning on its final possession. Brady could have called two runs with Cook to bleed more clock before Tyler Bass attempted the deciding kick.
Instead, he kept the ball out of Cook’s hands. Brady said the unusual finish to Sunday’s Giants-Commanders game was part of his thinking, particularly the possibility that Buffalo could still give the Rams an opportunity if the field-goal attempt missed.
Looking back, Brady said the safer alternative may have been for quarterback Josh Allen to take two kneel-downs before the field-goal try rather than considering another Cook carry.
“James knows that protecting the football means protecting the entire organization,” Brady said. “When he is carrying it, there is no one else I would rather have with the ball. But we have to finish plays with possession. At the moment, he is leaving it out there.”
