Running Back · Buffalo Bills
James Cook — 2026 Fantasy Outlook
Analysis by Shawn Childs, from his 2026 guide — his words, unedited.
The case
- · Cook comes off a career-high 332 touches, leading to his third consecutive 1,000-yard season.
- · His scoring has been much improved across his last 38 games (35 touchdowns).
- · The Bills won’t commit to him on passing downs (33/291/2 last year), less than half of their 2025 running back receiving opportunity (68/664/6 on 88 targets).
- · Buffalo’s running backs ranked second in yards per catch (9.8).
- · The Bills led the NFL in rushing attempts (547), rushing yards (2,714), and rushing touchdowns (30) last season, with running backs accounting for 419 carries for 2,100 yards (2nd) and 15 touchdowns.
- · Cook ranked 8th (266.70) and 6th (305.20) in PPR fantasy points over the past two seasons.
- · New offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael featured the running back positions in Drew Brees’s best seasons in New Orleans.
Question marks
- · After a career season, can Cook repeat? He’s missed two games with Buffalo over four years.
- · The Bills lost G David Edwards to the Saints in the offseason (four years for $61 million).
- · Can Josh Allen regain his passing momentum in attempts, yards, and passing touchdowns?
Shawn's conclusion
Cook was on the field for 57.1% of Buffalo’s plays last year, which leaves openings for some empty days (four in 2025, but Week 18 was due to minimal snaps) when game flow doesn’t break his way. He tied Bijan Robinson for second in running back impact ratio (52.9%) in 2025, thanks to scoring 20.00 fantasy points or more in nine of his 17 starts.
More on Cook
The Bills gave Cook a workhorse opportunity last season (342 touches – 265 in 2024 and 281 in 2023). He responded by upping his yards per rush (5.2 – career high), highlighted by gaining 20 yards or more on 13 plays, with five reaching the 40-yard mark. Cook ended the year ranked sixth in fantasy points (305.20) in PPR formats, while coming into the season as about the 14th running back drafted. Over his previous two years, he finished 11th (235.50 – 2023) and 8th (266.70 – 2024) in fantasy scoring.
Cook began last year with four consecutive games with touchdowns (5), with the latter three resulting in over 100 yards rushing (21/132/2, 19/108/1, and 22/117/1). After two dull games (15/49 and 17/87) with no catches, he posted a career-high in rushing yards (216) against the Panthers with two touchdowns. He gained over 100 combined yards in seven of his final nine starts (only two snaps in Week 18), giving him a high consistency rating, but scored five of seven touchdowns over this span in two late road games (@NE and @CLE). Cook ended his season with 141 combined yards and two catches on 26 touches in his playoff loss to the Broncos.
Buffalo had him on the field for 57.1% of their snaps, up from 46.7% in 2024. There’s something to be said for rostering a lead running back for a high-scoring team. His catch rate (82.6%) and yards per catch (9.1) over the past three seasons suggest that the Bills should get him more involved in the passing game, but that may require Buffalo chasing in more games on the scoreboard.
Cook is a special player with big play and scoring ability who is coming off three consecutive career seasons. With 1,500 combined yards, 12 touchdowns, and 30 catches, he could only be a backend top 12 running back, suggesting that Buffalo must continue to give him 300+ touches to earn his higher price point in 2026.
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