Former Georgia tailback James Cook has taken over the NFL rushing lead with 1,532 yards through 15 games.

Cook rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries to help lift Buffalo to a 23-20 road win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

Bulldogs’ coach Kirby Smart said UGA staff once likened Cook’s running style to a Mongoose.

“He runs with toughness, he doesn’t have huge weight, but he runs behind his pads,” Smart said in 2021. “Coaches called him ‘The Mongoose” when he first got here. He’s hard to tackle, he’s always slithering and sliding through there, and he’s hard to get a direct hit on.”

Indianapolis tailback Jonathan Taylor had led the NFL in rushing for most of the season but was held to 46 yards on 16 carries in the Colts’ 48-27 loss to San Francisco on Monday night, leaving him behind Cook with 1,489 yards.

Both backs have two games remaining in the regular season, as Buffalo plays host to Philadelphia and the New York Jets to close out its slate, while Taylor and Indianapolis finish with a home game against Jacksonville next Sunday followed by a road trip to Houston.

“It’s a blessing I get to go out there and perform and be at my best,” Cook said. “It ain’t over yet, I’ve just got to keep going, and hopefully we win it.”

Terrell Davis, who played at UGA from 1992-1994, is the most recent former UGA tailback to lead the NFL in rushing with 2008 yards in 1998.

Cook, who played at Georgia from 2018-2021, has nine 100-yard rushing games this season which ties him with former tailback Thurman Thomas for second-most in a season by a Buffalo back. O.J. Simpson holds the franchise record with 11 games with 100 yards or more rushing.

Cook said he’s playing the best football of his NFL career, but he believes more is possible.

“There’s a lot of room for improvement,” Cook said. “So I’ll just keep working and doing what I do.”

Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen believes Cook is tops in the league at the position.

“He’s the best back in football,” Allen said, per ESPN. “I don’t know how the awards will shake out, but he should be in the running for every award. He makes our offense go.”

Cook is showing Buffalo fans and management he’s worth the new contract he demanded during a training camp holdout.

Cook, after tying a franchise record with 16 rushing touchdowns last season, got a new deal worth a reported $48 million with an annual value of $12 million — that ranks tied for sixth in the NFL, per OvertheCap.com.