James Cook Week 2 Outlook - Bills at Dolphins

By Derek Brown (FantasyPros), Thu, Sep 12th 2024, 1:05pm EDT

Cook was the Bills' workhorse in Week 1, playing 61% of the snaps with 22 touches and 93 total yards. Sadly, he didn't score in Week 1, but his red zone usage was slightly encouraging. Yes, he only accounted for 33% of this red zone touch usage in this offense, but he clearly led the running back room with three opportunities (Ray Davis and Ty Johnson each one). Cook also received the only carry inside the five-yard line while he split the inside the ten-yard line work with Allen (two rushing attempts for each). Cook also dominated the red zone snaps for the backs with 52.9%. Among 34 qualifying backs, Cook ranked 15th in explosive run rate and 11th in missed tackles forced per attempt in Week 1. Miami's Week 1 showing as a run defense gives Cook hope. Last week, the Dolphins allowed the eighth-highest explosive run rate and the 11th-highest missed tackle rate. This stands opposed to their 2023 ranks, where they were stifling to rushing attacks, holding teams to bottom five metrics in explosive run rate, missed tackles, and yards after contact per attempt. Also worth noting is that in Week 1, 58% of Cook's runs were with zone plays, and last year, Miami allowed the 11th-highest success rate to zone runs.