I quickly learned to appreciate Cooks (when he got on the field) after having concerns about his skillset when they drafted him (like many, my concerns were about having an RB1 with his measurables and style of running as we really appeared to needed a legit three down RB1 ((which he isn’t … yet🤞)). Also, so I didn’t have to hold my breath every time Josh was off to the races (which I still love subjectively but fear objectively any time the entire future of our “franchise” tucks it in and runs as Hero Josh who runs like a four inch taller version of Mike Alstott).
I sort of thought we drafted Cook to some degree in part because we lost out on signing JD McKissic with his strongest ability (catching)—not judging them as equals in overall talent, Cook is obviously light years ahead of McKissic. Fortunately, Cook has clearly proven to us all that he’s a special “electric back” who will continue to develop into a better player (catching and eventually I hope blocking) that will make more and more contributions so they can expand his repertoire. No matter what anyone might say about him I’d have to think that 99% of fans will concede he’s an outstanding asset we just need to use properly as his play evolves so he will continue to be a more frequent game changer.
But, I concur with others who believe Cooks alone is not going to provide us with a stand-alone running game. We need a “thunder” to his “lightning”. I really grew to appreciate Murray’s play but when he came in for Cook it was a blatant tip of the hand that he was going to use his power to get us those 2-3 yards needed for a 1st or as a blocking back when we passed on third and short. I think he did great. Harris went down earlier than I was able to see enough of him to judge him but I really grew to appreciate Ty Johnson (which was one of the nice surprises of the year). He took advantage of his opportunities and delivered nice strong runs contrary to what my aforementioned lack of real football knowledge had me expecting of him before the season started.