Bills' Lack of Proven RB2 Evident in Top Running Back Duo Rankings

James Cook is easily one of the best running backs in the NFL. The Buffalo Bills superstar back led the league in rushing yardage last year with 1,621 yards.

The prior season, he was tied for the league-lead with 16 touchdowns, which proves he's not just a one-hit wonder. Entering the 2026 season, however, there are still questions about the depth behind Cook.

Buffalo can't continue to lean so heavily on Cook that they risk his health, but they may not truly trust their backups. Ty Johnson is an effective third-down back, especially as a receiver, but Ray Davis has yet to prove that he can be counted on consistently as a No. 2 back. The lack of faith in Davis goes beyond Buffalo, which was reinforced in a recent ranking of the NFL's top five running back duos from Matt Verderame of SI.com.

Which RB duos topped the list?

Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams runs to score a touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Verderame ranked his top five duos, and here is a look at his full list:

5. New England Patriots: Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson
4. Chicago Bears: D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai
3. New Orleans Saints: Travis Etienne Jr. and Alvin Kamara
2. Pittsburgh Steelers: Rico Dowdle and Jaylen Warren
1. Los Angeles Rams: Kyren Williams and Blake Corum

What's interesting about this list is that Buffalo's top two backs actually outperformed the majority of this group. When combining Cook's 1,621 yards and Davis' 275 yards, the Bills had 1,896 yards rushing for the top two backs. That's more than Chicago had with D'Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai, who had 1,870 combined yards as well as TreVeyon Henderson and Rhamondre Stevenson of the Patriots, who had 1,514 yards combined.

It's also more than the Saints duo of Travis Etienne and Alvin Kamara, although that one is slightly different since Etienne wasn't in New Orleans last year, which could change the dynamic. The same is true for the Pittsburgh duo, which had 2,034 total yards with Jaylen Warren going for 958. Rico Dowdle, however, had 1,076 yards with the Carolina Panthers.

This means the only returning duo to outperform Buffalo in 2025 was the Rams combination of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum. Williams had 1,252 rushing yards and Corum had 746, for a combined total of 1,998 yards.

James Cook has a lot on his shoulders

Buffalo Bills running back James Cook III during the first half against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

None of this is to say the Bills should have been in the top five. The groups listed are all incredibly talented, and Verderame has solid reasoning for his selections.

Instead, it shows that Davis has yet to prove he can truly step in and fill the void if needed. The rest of these duos have excellent No. 1 running backs and have plenty of faith that the No. 2 back can carry the load should something happen to the starter.

Davis averaged 4.7 yards per attempt in 2025, but there are still plenty of questions about whether or not he can handle 20 rushes per game and keep the Buffalo offense moving forward. It also highlights just how talented Cook is, as he continues to carry the running back corps in Buffalo.

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