Bills RB James Cook weaves his way through defenders for

• Alaina Getzenberg, ESPNDec 22, 2024, 06:22 PM ET

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  Alaina Getzenberg is a staff writer who covers the Buffalo Bills and the NFL. She joined ESPN in 2021. Alaina was previously a beat reporter for the Charlotte Observer and has also worked for CBS Sports and the Dallas Morning News. She is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley. You can follow her via Twitter @agetzenberg.

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Running back James Cook got the Buffalo Bills on the board with a 46-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter to cut the New England Patriots‘ lead to 14-7 in Sunday’s AFC East matchup.

The touchdown drive came after a sluggish start for the Bills. The defense gave up two straight touchdown drives to the Patriots, while the offense’s first drive went for only six plays before it was forced to punt.

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The offense marched downfield on its second possession, bolstered by a 13-yard pass to tight end Dawson Knox to start it off. Cook’s touchdown rush came on the fourth play with 12:05 remaining in the quarter. Cook took the handoff from quarterback Josh Allen and weaved his way past defenders and missed tackles before finding the open field and ultimately the end zone.

The score marked his 14th rushing touchdown of the season, the third most in a single season in franchise history behind O.J. Simpson (16, 1975) and Allen (15, 2023).

Cook has four 40-plus-yard rushing touchdowns this season, tied for the most in the NFL with Saquon Barkley. It also marks the most in a season in Bills history, passing Simpson in 1973, ’75 and ’76 (three each).

Cook also scored the Bills’ second touchdown of the day, catching a pass from Allen and then running untouched into the end zone for a five-yard score to make it a 14-14 game to end the first drive of the third quarter. The score was Cook’s 16th scrimmage touchdown of the year, second-most in a single season in Bills history (Simpson, 23, 1975)

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