Buffalo Bills coach Joe Brady told James Cook on Tuesday that the fumbles have to stop or the carries will, a day after Buffalo beat the Los Angeles Rams 37-34 in overtime.
Cook put the ball on the ground twice Monday night and lost one, a fumble at the Rams’ 20 that ended Buffalo’s first overtime drive. He has four fumbles this season and has lost two. He also has 532 rushing yards, second in the NFL, and five rushing touchdowns, fourth in the league.
“I don’t want to lose sight of how great he is running the ball right now,” Brady said. “But putting the ball on the ground, it’s negating all the positive. It’s going to cost us football games. It almost cost us one.” He added that the ball security has to improve or the carries are going to decrease, and that at some point there have to be consequences. He put Cook back in anyway.
The overtime sequence showed the bind. Khalil Shakir’s gain of more than 50 yards put Buffalo near the red zone, Cook fumbled, and Greg Rousseau blocked Harrison Mevis’s field-goal try. Brady went back to Cook for two short carries on the winning drive, then sent Tyler Bass out for the kick rather than risk another handoff. Cook told WGRZ, “Just got to hold onto it. Work on it each and every day.”
The defense Brady is trying to keep on the field has its own problem. Coordinator Jim Leonhard said it is time to be good at something and that everything is being evaluated, including roster changes if the answers are not there. Buffalo allowed 33 first downs against the Rams, matching the most the defense has given up since 1991, and Matthew Stafford threw for 383 yards. Opponents have converted 8 of 9 fourth downs. The Bills are allowing 389 yards a game, third most in the league, and 141 points, fifth most. Leonhard said Josh Allen bailed the unit out, and that a defense that plans to play in big games has to close them.
The Bills are 4-1 and stayed in Southern California before the trip to Las Vegas for Sunday’s game against the Raiders, who are 3-2. Ty Johnson and Ray Davis are the other backs in the rotation if Cook’s share comes down. Brady said he does not want Cook running timid, and that he is not sure anyone in the NFL is running the ball better.
Tap in with the Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills