Who Should I Start? Jamaal Williams or James Cook

Monday, August 11, 12:00 PM

Free-agent running back Jamaal Williams is scheduled to work out for the Miami Dolphins on Monday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Williams worked out for the Chicago Bears on Saturday, so he could be getting close to signing with a team for the 2025 season. The 30-year-old played in 14 games for the New Orleans Saints in 2024, rushing for 164 yards and one touchdown on 48 carries. He's a complementary piece at this point, but Williams has been an effective goal-line and short-yardage player at certain times in his career. Miami has Jaylen Wright, Alexander Mattison, and Ollie Gordon II as the leading candidates for the RB2 role behind De'Von Achane. However, Mattison (neck/shoulder) left the team's first preseason game early with neck and shoulder soreness, so Williams could be brought in as a veteran replacement.

Tuesday, January 13, 7:00 PM

After finishing the regular season with an NFL-best 1,621 rushing yards, Buffalo Bills running back James Cook had an underwhelming outing in his first game of the postseason. The 26-year-old was held to just 46 rushing yards on 15 carries and five receiving yards on two catches by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Cook's regular-season track record should afford him the benefit of the doubt from fantasy managers. However, he will face another very difficult run defense in the Divisional round when Buffalo travels to Denver to take on the Broncos. The Broncos defense finished the regular season ranked third in the NFL in yards per carry allowed (3.9) and tied for fourth in rushing touchdowns allowed (11). Additionally, Buffalo's already depleted pass-catching corps lost another two wide receivers in Gabe Davis (knee) and Tyrell Shavers (knee), who both suffered season-ending knee injuries in the Wild Card round. As a result, Denver could be even more geared up to stop Cook and take away the run. Cook remains a high-end running back option, but fantasy managers may want to downgrade expectations heading into the Divisional round.