Since Joe Brady took over the offense for the Buffalo Bills, their rushing attack has become one of their biggest strengths that teams struggle against. Prior to the 2023 season, Buffalo’s rushing attack was Josh Allen and it took a toll on the offense. Once James Cook stepped into the role, the rushing attack became a focal point.
Cook has rushed for 3 consecutive 1,000+ yard seasons, including leading the league in rushing with 1,621 yards last season. He also has 28 touchdowns on the ground the last two seasons. While Cook has been one of the best running backs in the league, the backup duo of Ray Davis and Ty Johnson has also been very serviceable. Davis even became an All-Pro special teams returner.
A major factor as to why Cook and the rushing attack have been successful is because of the offensive line. While they will need to figure out who will be replacing David Edwards at left guard, having continuity helps.
Bills rushing attack leads AFC East heading into 2026
Sayre Bedinger from NFL Spin Zone power ranked every AFC East running back duo going into the 2026 season, and Bedinger has Buffalo’s rushing attack at the top ahead of the duos from the rest of the division.
"Last season, Cook finished with over 1,900 yards from scrimmage and 14 total touchdowns, and dare I say he's capable of a lot more in the passing game. He had 44 catches with 4 TDs back in his second NFL season, but he's had just 33 and 32 catches in the last two seasons, respectively." said Bedinger.
"You could choose either Ray Davis or Ty Johnson for the other half of this duo, but either way, it's still the best in the division. Ray Davis was an All-Pro last season as a return man, averaging 30.4 yards per kickoff return with one touchdown. He added 4.7 yards per carry as a backup running back and over 360 yards from scrimmage offensively." Bedinger added.
While Breece Hall, De’Von Achane, and Tre’Veyon Henderson are all quality running backs. But when it comes to overall duos, Buffalo’s takes it all and quite frankly, it’s not close. With Joe Brady being promoted to head coach, I don’t see a world where the running game goes away. Not even a little bit, even with the acquisition of DJ Moore for the passing game.
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