James Cook vs Malik Nabers

“Check out all of Fitz’s top fantasy football draft picks to target >> James Cook (BUF) James Cook led the NFL in rushing yards in 2025 (1,621).”

“James Cook (RB – BUF) has already shown flashes of every skill needed to be the overall RB1: a big receiving season, an 18-touchdown season, and a 1,600-yard rushing season, just never all in the same year.”

“Repeat Seasons It should be more of the same for James Cook and Chase Brown , who saw little change in their offenses this offseason.”

“31 10 21 James Cook 13 5 8 Josh Jacobs 7 15 -8 Saquon Barkley 2 13 -11 Bucky Irving 10 33 -23 In past years, so many top RBs have gotten hurt that the Zero (or hero) RB draft strategies have become popular.”

“I recently gushed about James Cook and Ray Davis as players to target at Underdog at their ADPs .”

“James Cook was picked as the best value on the board at 11th overall, priced almost entirely off last year’s production rather than his upside. The case for a top-three running back season rests on four pillars, and Cook checks every one.”

“James Cook was a no-brainer pick, and it came down to Derrick Henry and Ashton Jeanty for the RB2 slot.”

“The Bills put their money where their mouth is by giving James Cook a ton of money, then followed that up with a bunch of touches (349, to be exact), and brought the rushing title back to Buffalo. James Cook led the NFL in 2025 with 11 games of 80+ rushing yards.”

“Well, so much for all of the regression talk about James Cook last year. Cook crushed all of the haters, improving his stock as the RB6 in fantasy points per game. He led the NFL in rushing yards (1,621) while finishing third in rushing attempts and sixth in rushing touchdowns (tied).”

“James Cook is expected to be more involved in the passing game under new offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael, whose running backs have been heavily involved in the passing attack throughout his coaching history. Cook had a career-high 309 rush attempts in the regular season en route to the NFL rushing title last season, and shifting some of his carries into targets could be a wise move given his excellent receiving skills demonstrated at the NFL level.”

“Unlike Saquon Barkley, who also plays with a quarterback used heavily near the end zone, the Bills do mix in Cook near the end zone, instead of strictly relying on Josh Allen moving the pile. Cook had 14 rushing attempts inside the 5-yard line in 2025 (tied for 8th in the NFL) with 6 touchdowns on those runs.”

“Cook got a new contract last offseason, which was well-earned on the field. He had the best season of his early career, setting career highs in rushing attempts (309), rushing yards (1,621), touches (342), and yards from scrimmage (1,912) to go along with 14 touchdowns.”

“If he can string together a healthy season, we could be looking at a low-end WR1 on a perennially potent offense.” – Ellis Johnson ( FantasyPros ) Malik Nabers (WR – NYG) “ Malik Nabers is my pick.”

“There is plenty of uncertainty around Nabers and whether or not he will be his usual explosive self to start the season, but getting a WR of this caliber in the third round is the type of pick that can really make a difference down the stretch of the season if he is back to 100%.”

“I’m going to piggyback on my running back health statement above and avoid Malik Nabers at receiver.”

“Only SEC WR besides Malik Nabers with 30+ missed tackles forced on receptions in a season over the past 5 years”

“This should lock him into the second option behind Malik Nabers”

“Add in the fact that Malik Nabers is recovering from a significant knee injury, and you can see why Dart is a pass.”

“Malik Nabers (WR – NYG): Down 4 spots to No. 44 A slow, steady bleed that’s now the longest-running faller trend over the last few weeks. Nabers has slipped roughly 14 spots since we first flagged him in late June for missing mandatory minicamp during a lengthy ACL and meniscus rehab.”

“Malik Nabers, CeeDee Lamb, and Justin Jefferson all have similar LTV scores in the same range as Love’s.”

“This dip will only increase when Malik Nabers heads to the physically unable to perform (PUP) list at the start of training camp. Latest reports suggest it could be Week 5 or 6 before Nabers is back to full health.”

“Nabers could miss the start of the year and might not be 100% until 2027, making him a massive risk to draft as a top-12 wide receiver.”

“The Giants know what they have in a healthy Nabers, and they know what they have in his absence. If available, he'll be a main focus and favorite target for second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart, and if he's not, then he won't.”

“Malik Nabers and Tucker Kraft finish outside WR50 and TE20, respectively. Nabers is still way too expensive at WR 17, but he's coming off reconstructive knee surgery, and even Nabers admitted to ESPN's Adam Schefter that week one sounds "a little ambitious."”