Start Derrick Henry or James Cook III? Week 1

Our Week 1 call

Start James Cook III over Derrick Henry in Week 1.

James Cook III is priced by the books at 9.3 projected points. Derrick Henry has no player market posted for this week, so his side of this call rests on consensus ADP and the news wire only. Drafters take James Cook III at ADP 12 and Derrick Henry at 15. Market coverage on James Cook III is 50 percent of what his position needs, so the market side of this carries proportionally less weight.

What the books imply

Player prop markets imply 9.3 fantasy points for James Cook III, with 50 percent of the markets a RB needs posted.

No sportsbook posted a player market for Derrick Henry in Week 1.

Week 1 matchups

James Cook III and BUF visit HOU on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

HOU allowed 10.5 fantasy points to RBs in its one game this season, the 4th fewest in the league.

Running backs ran for 63 yards and no touchdowns against HOU and caught passes for 12 more yards.

Derrick Henry and BAL visit IND.

IND allowed 39.1 fantasy points to RBs in its one game this season, the 3rd most in the league.

Running backs ran for 162 yards and 3 touchdowns against IND and caught passes for 29 more yards.

By points allowed to the position, Derrick Henry has the softer matchup.

Injury status

James Cook III was not on the injury report when the call was made.

Derrick Henry was not on the injury report when the call was made.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, James Cook III played 17 games for BUF and scored 302.2 PPR points, 17.8 a game, finishing RB6.

He ran 309 times for 1621 yards and 12 touchdowns, and caught 33 of 40 targets for 291 yards.

He was on the field for 60 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

James Cook III, Week 18 of 2025 against NYJ: 2 carries for 15 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards, 1.5 PPR points.

James Cook III, Week 17 of 2025 against PHI: 39 of 76 snaps, 20 carries for 74 yards, 4 targets and 1 catch for 3 yards, 8.7 PPR points.

James Cook III, Week 16 of 2025 against CLE: 28 of 50 snaps, 16 carries for 117 yards, 2 targets and 1 catch for 17 yards, 2 touchdowns, 26.4 PPR points.

In 2025, Derrick Henry played 17 games for BAL and scored 279.5 PPR points, 16.4 a game, finishing RB8.

He ran 307 times for 1595 yards and 16 touchdowns, and caught 15 of 21 targets for 150 yards.

He was on the field for 54 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

Derrick Henry, Week 18 of 2025 against PIT: 20 carries for 126 yards, 1 target and 0 catches for 0 yards, 12.6 PPR points.

Derrick Henry, Week 17 of 2025 against GB: 48 of 76 snaps, 36 carries for 216 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards, 4 touchdowns, 45.6 PPR points.

Derrick Henry, Week 16 of 2025 against NE: 24 of 55 snaps, 18 carries for 128 yards, 0 targets and 0 catches for 0 yards, 2 touchdowns, 22.8 PPR points.

How Week 1 went

James Cook III scored 9.9 PPR points and Derrick Henry scored 35.3.

The call was wrong: Derrick Henry outscored James Cook III by 25.4.

James Cook III finished 0.6 points above the 9.3 the props implied.

James Cook III, Week 1 against HOU: 42 of 58 snaps, 13 carries for 57 yards, 4 targets and 3 catches for 12 yards, 9.9 PPR points.

James Cook III finished as the week's RB27 in PPR scoring.

Derrick Henry, Week 1 against IND: 37 of 68 snaps, 24 carries for 144 yards, 1 target and 1 catch for 19 yards, 3 touchdowns, 35.3 PPR points.

Derrick Henry finished as the week's RB1 in PPR scoring.

Their other Week 1 calls

• Start James Cook III over Chase Brown.
• Start Christian McCaffrey over James Cook III.
• Start James Cook III over De'Von Achane.
• Start Derrick Henry over Ashton Jeanty.
• Start Derrick Henry over Chase Brown.
• Start De'Von Achane over Derrick Henry.