We all know that the success or failure of the Buffalo Bills’ 2024 season comes down to one man, Josh Allen. If Allen is great, the Bills could be great, too. If Allen is bad, the team will be sitting home come January. The question is, though, who does Allen rely on to help make him great? And the somewhat surprising answer this coming season is running back James Cook.
Heading into the Bills’ 2024 season, many of the players Allen has relied on in the past — such as wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, center Mitch Morse, and even defensive leaders like Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde — are gone. So, while Allen’s play is the key factor in the team’s ultimate success, he will still need help in all aspects of the game to be the best version of himself.
Allen will need a strong defense to make stops and get the ball back for him. Several star players could contribute to this, such as Matt Milano returning from last year’s injury, Von Miller returning to full strength after an injury two seasons ago, or young veterans like Gregory Rousseau or Ed Oliver making the leap from star to superstar level.
On the other side of the ball, Allen will need a strong offensive line, a go-to pass-catcher or two, and a strong running game.
The O-line is coming together, although the battle to replace Morse at center between guard Conner McGovern and rookie Sedrick Van Pran-Granger is one to watch. In the passing game, rookie Keon Coleman and second- and third-year players like WR Khalil Shakir and TE Dalton Kincaid could all become invaluable assets over the course of training camp.
Ultimately, it is the running game, though, that holds the key to the Bills’ success this season, and James Cook is the surprising Bills player who could make or break the 2024 season.
Why James Cook is the key to the Bills’ 2024 season
Josh Allen can do it all. He is the man who keys the offense, makes the decisions, and can be his team’s best runner at times. That said, the Bills are best when they have balance on offense and Allen can pick his spots instead of trying to be Superman.
When Allen dons that cape, he can win games singlehandedly, but he can also make a barrage of boneheaded plays and throw the ball to the other team, see Week 1 vs. the New York Jets in 2023.
Last season, the offense veered way too much in the Allen Hero Ball direction, which led to the firing of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. Joe Brady replaced Dorsey and Buffalo went 6-1 down the stretch to win the AFC East after a disappointing 5-5 start.
The key to this turnaround last season was a commitment to the run game featuring a heavy helping of James Cook. The former Georgia Bulldog averaged 11.7 carries per game in the team’s first 10 contests and 16.7 in the final seven. In this back half, Cook’s crowning moment was a dominating 25-carry, 179-yard, one-touchdown game against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 14.
With the passing game in flux, at least to start the Bills season, it is absolutely crucial that the running game gets going early and often.
At 5-foot-11, 190 pounds, Cook isn’t built to be a 30-carry-per-game bell cow, which makes it critical that Brady makes the most out of the carries he does give the RB. What should help the third-year back this season is that fourth-round pick out of Kentucky, Ray Davis, is a 5-foot-8, 220-pound battering ram who can take some carries and keep Cook fresh throughout the game.
So, for the Bills to be the best version of themselves in 2024, Cook must be the dangerous home-run hitter that he can be at his best. He must also get a handle (pun intended) on his worst tendency, which is fumbling. He lost his first touch in the NFL and coughed up four fumbles last season.
If all that can happen, Cook will be Allen’s best friend and the former can allow the latter to be his best self, picking and choosing his spots to dip into the phonebooth and slip on his superhero tights instead of forcing it because that’s the only chance his team has to win.
And if Cook allows Allen to play in this optimal form, watch out. The Bills could be true Super Bowl contenders come the start of the 2025 calendar year despite losing some of the biggest names on the roster this offseason.
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