James Cook Delivers Pointed Message on Bills' Super Bowl Window Ahead of 2026
A late second-round pick in 2022, James Cook has developed into one of the best running backs in the NFL.
He rushed for just over 500 yards as a rookie, but has improved every year since, culminating in a second-team All-Pro season in 2025 that has expectations soaring for 2026.
Cook finished the 2025 campaign with a league-leading 1,621 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns on 309 carries, averaging 5.2 yards per carry. He also racked up 291 receiving yards, giving him 1,912 total yards from scrimmage, the fourth-most in the entire NFL. He earned his third straight Pro Bowl nod and is just entering his prime at 26 years old.
But individual success still hasn’t translated to team success for the Buffalo Bills. They’ve made the playoffs seven years running, the longest streak of any team in the NFL, yet keep falling short.
Some figured the window might be open for a deep Super Bowl run last season, with Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, and Lamar Jackson all missing the playoffs, yet the Bills still suffered a divisional round loss to the Denver Broncos.
It’s part of a painful pattern in Buffalo dating back to their four straight Super Bowl losses in the 1990s, and now there’s real pressure on this group to right the ship in 2026 behind one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, Josh Allen, who just turned 30.
On Tuesday, speaking on “Good Morning Football,” Cook addressed that pressure and explained why this upcoming season is so pivotal for the Bills.
“It’s on us. It’s on us,” Cook said. “We control our own destiny, I feel like. We always get close every year and just never get over the hump. So, I just feel like, just getting over that hump and just doing something special in Buffalo by winning a Super Bowl is gonna be big for us.”
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Buffalo clearly sensed more was needed to get over that hump this offseason, bringing in real change. The organization fired head coach Sean McDermott after nine seasons with the team and promoted offensive coordinator Joe Brady to take over in what will be his first-ever head coaching job.
The Bills also hired a new defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard, and brought in some new playmakers on both sides of the ball, including wide receiver DJ Moore, linebacker Bradley Chubb, cornerback Dee Alford, and safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson.
Expectations for 2026 are as high as ever. Allen is still playing at an MVP level, and they’ve continued to provide him with more pieces on offense, even snagging top college receiver Skyler Bell in the fourth round of the NFL Draft. Cook is a true workhorse back, and they’ve got depth on defense.
McDermott got kicked to the curb because the team kept hitting a wall. With a new regime, a new stadium, and new talent across the roster, fans are expecting a different result this upcoming season.
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This story was originally published July 14, 2026 at 1:31 PM.