The Bills finally let James Cook cook, and his huge stats led to a perfect bounceback

Billy Heyen

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The Bills finally let James Cook cook, and his huge stats led to a perfect bounceback image

Finally, the Buffalo Bills let James Cook cook, and that's all it took.

For the past season and a half, if there's been one complaint about the Bills' offense, it's been that it doesn't always seem like Cook gets the usage a star running back deserves.

There was no such problem in that regard on Sunday. With the Bills in Charlotte to take on the Carolina Panthers, Cook made the stage all his. Everyone else just got to watch him put on a show.

The final stats for Cook were incredible:

  • 19 runs
  • 216 rushing yards
  • 2 rushing touchdowns

That's an average of 11.4 yards per carry, and he did it without playing in the fourth quarter with the Bills in total control.

It included a magnificent 64-yard touchdown run.

His second TD came from 21 yards out, a sweet weaving run through the defense.

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The Bills stated their intent right away. On multiple opening-drive plays, they ran a pitch sweep to the left, and they just blocked the heck out of the Panthers to pave space for Cook to glide down the field.

When Buffalo ran inside, that wasn't a problem, either. Cook slithered his way into space and picked up chunks of yardage, too.

The Bills still let Ty Johnson and Ray Davis see the field, too. But when Cook was in, they gave him the ball, as they should.

Everything went right for Buffalo on this day. Josh Allen ran for two short touchdowns, and he threw a 54-yard catch-and-run score to Khalil Shakir.

But this day was about Cook.

The Bills' wide receivers haven't done a great job at getting open of late, particularly in the two-game skid before Sunday. They very well could trade for a wideout before the Nov. 4 NFL trade deadline.

Whether they stick with their WRs or not, though, this team isn't about the guys on the perimeter. It's about the guys in the backfield.

Allen is Superman, the MVP, the clearly most important player on the team.

There's a reason, though, that the Bills eventually ceded ground and gave Cook a big contract this offseason. He's one of the best running backs in football.

And on this day, there was no doubt about whose show this was. James cooked, and that's all the Bills needed.

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Staff Writer