Raiders Opponent Breakout Player: RB James Cook

The Las Vegas Raiders will be looking to remain undefeated when they take on the Buffalo Bills on the road this Sunday.

The Raiders’ defense is coming off an impressive performance, holding the Denver Broncos to just 16 points.

They will face one of the best offenses in the NFL when they play the Bills, however, and this Buffalo team has the deepest rushing attack they have had since Coach Sean McDermott took over.

That is partly due to the emergence of second-year running back James Cook, who was a second-round selection in the 2022 NFL Draft out of Georgia.

Cook and Raiders running back Zamir White were teammates in college, and the two formed a dangerous duo in the Bulldogs’ backfield.

In his four seasons at Georgia, Cook rushed for 1,503 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also caught 67 passes for 730 yards and six scores. White and Cook often played together in the backfield, but White had 382 rushing attempts to Cook’s 230.

Cook is a multidimensional back who is an effective runner and pass catcher. The Raiders will need to be ready for however the Bills decide to use him.

Cook did not have much of an opportunity to play in his rookie season, as he was behind Devin Singletary and Zack Moss before Moss was traded in midseason. He had 89 carries for 507 yards and two touchdowns, and caught 21 passes for 180 yards and a score.

Now, Singletary is gone, and Cook has taken over as the No. 1 running back in Buffalo.

Cook was an incredibly talented running back prospect in his draft class. He is a fluid athlete who runs with patience and speed, and is a match-up nightmare for linebackers.

The Raiders will have to be mindful of how Cook can beat them, and Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham will need to game plan accordingly.

Linebackers like Divine Deablo and Robert Spillane will have to be ready for Cook to catch passes out of the backfield, and the Raiders’ defensive line will have to be ready for what he can bring as a runner.

Cook is widely expected to have a massive jump in production, and the Raiders will be facing a breakout player on the Bills’ offense.

The Silver and Black remain on the road this week as they travel to play the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, Sept. 17, at 1:05 p.m. EDT/10:05 a.m. PDT.

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