Denver Broncos hosting running back James Cook
The Denver Broncos are hosting Georgia running back James Cook as one of their Top-30 pre-draft visits.
Add Georgia running back James Cook to the list of running backs from the 2022 NFL Draft visiting the Denver Broncos. The team will be hosting Cook on Friday, per Josh Norris of Underdog Fantasy.
James Cook is the younger brother of Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook, who is a tremendous star and one of the best running backs in the entire league.
James Cook spent the past four years at Georgia. He accumulated 1,503 yards on 230 carries and also added 14 touchdowns on the ground. Like many running backs in college (or so it seems), Cook’s best season came during his senior year at Georgia.
Cook rushed 113 times for 728 yards and seven touchdowns in 2021. He added 27 receptions for 284 yards and four touchdowns in the receiving game.
Broncos general manager George Paton was part of the group on the Vikings that ended up selecting the older Cook in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The two obviously come from the same genetics, so it is certainly possible that Paton sees something special in James Cook.
Cook could be selected somewhere in the third or maybe the fourth round of the draft, according to some.
While I don’t necessarily see the Broncos taking a running back high in the 2022 NFL Draft, they certainly could. With Javonte Williams as the expected workhorse, they could go with Mike Boone who was also with the Vikings before joining Denver. If not, Cook may be a nice pickup.
The fact that Cook does not have a ton of carries added to his name is good in terms of his potential longevity in the NFL. He made the most of the carries he did get in college. During his first three years at Georgia, he rushed 117 times. In 2021, like I mentioned above, he had 113 carries.
The takeaways here are that he can hold up with a good workload, but he would not have to with the Broncos.
Cook is listed at 5-foot-11, 190 pounds. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.42 seconds.
The question here is, will the team draft another running back high after trading up for Williams last season? That will depend on how much of a fit they feel a guy like Cook is for the team. Cook has tremendous upside.