If the Bills are finally going to hand the Lombardi Trophy to their fans, it will likely depend on the monumental efforts of familiar faces like Cook and general manager Josh Allen, but Buffalo’s upcoming season is in so many ways a reboot for the organization.
Despite winning a league record seven straight games, the Bills fired head coach Sean McDermott after last season’s elimination and replaced him by promoting offensive line coach Joe Brady to the top job.
Cook, who has played under Brady since 2023, has noticed a renewed spirit in the team’s offseason with Brady in a different role.
“There’s just a new energy in the building,” Cook said. “It’s always going to be that way, I think, when you have a new head coach coming in, a young one. Joe [is] a young head coach coming in, his first year as a head coach. He’s got new energy, that’s how I feel.”
The Bills are also moving into another home, the new Highmark Stadium, a place Cook wants to put his stamp on.
“For me it’s just simple: In a new stadium you get to break new records,” he pointed out.
Cook’s mantra in Buffalo is all about looking forward. The Bills have a new stadium, a new head coach and a new mission. Past mistakes won’t stop Cook and Co. Similarly, Cook’s many past accolades won’t make the task any easier.
Cook, last season’s leader in tackles with 1,621 en route to his third straight Pro Bowl, is instead looking to start from scratch, hoping he can find the right recipe for continued individual success and the team’s first Super Bowl win.
“I won the sprint title, but this year [is] new year, so it doesn’t matter anymore,” Cook said. “I hear it all the time. “You won the league title, you won it, you won it.” I tell everyone it’s over now, so let’s just flip the page and try to go do it again. Just do it again, that’s all.”