Buffalo Bills running back James Cook III was electric in the team’s dominating Week 8 win over the Carolina Panthers, rushing for a career-high 216 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. For his efforts,
Cook was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week. It’s Cook’s third Player of the Week award since entering the league in 2022.
Cook, in tandem with fullback Reggie Gilliam and Buffalo’s offensive line, demolished Carolina in the trenches to the tune of 153 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries in the first half. His 216 yards are the most by any NFL running back in the 2025 season — and he sat out the final quarter of action after the game was well in hand.
The last time a Bills running back ran for more yards in a game was back in 1976, when NFL Hall of Fame running back O.J. Simpson set the team’s all-time record with 273 yards against the Detroit Lions in a Week 12 game.
Cook was a nightmare for a Panthers defense that had allowed just 235 rushing yards combined in four games prior. He averaged almost eight yards per carry before contact, a further testament to the dominant trench work. Cook was nearly untouchable until well past the sticks, and he wasn’t contacted at all on his darting 64-yard sprint to pay dirt for six.
Through seven games, Cook has 126 carries for 753 yards and seven touchdowns, with 38 runs gaining a first down. He’s averaging 6.0 yards per carry and 107.6 rushing yards per game. As a receiver, Cook has 12 receptions (14 targets) for 89 yards.
It’s possible that future Bills running backs will be chasing this mark of Cook’s for decades to come — that is, unless he keeps setting new records. Cook has played an instrumental role in Buffalo’s offense, and his name deserves to be in NFL MVP conversations at the halfway mark of the 2025 NFL season.
