The Buffalo Bills made some big investments in their future this offseason, locking down a series of key players to long-term contract extensions.
James Cook, the team’s star running back who is coming off a breakout season, was not among them — and might not be signing a long-term deal anytime soon.
Bills general manager Brandon Beane spoke this week about the team’s recent signings, hinting that the team is not close to a deal with Cook and won’t be working on it anytime soon. The running back is headed into the final year of his rookie contract and coming off a season where he led the NFL with 16 rushing touchdowns. While Cook has expressed a desire to sign a new deal and floated a big number, Beane threw some cold water on the speculation this week.
Bills ‘Moved On’ From James Cook Contract Talks
Speaking to reporters this week, Beane said there had been some initial contract talks with Cook’s camps but noted that they didn’t go anywhere. Cook had publicly floated the idea of making $15 million per year, which would make him the league’s highest-paid running back behind Christian McCaffrey.
Beane insinuated that the team is not close to Cook’s annual salary number, saying they chose to focus on extending other players who had more attainable contract expectations.
“I love Jimbo, proud of his success, just like these other guys that we got extended,” Beane said at the Annual League Meeting, via NFL.com. “I don’t talk about negotiations, I would say his reps and him did put it out there that we did talk, so I’m not sharing anything new. It didn’t lead to anything as far as closing in on a deal, so we moved onto the guys that we were more on the same page with.
“At this point, we’re on to the draft, once we got (Christian) Benford done. I don’t see us doing any deals anytime soon.”
Beane’s statement implies that without a change from Cook’s camp, the running back will be headed into the final year of his contract without a new deal. Recent trends may not be on Cook’s side, as the team has not generally given contract extensions to running backs during Beane’s tenure.
Cook established himself as the top running back in Buffalo, turning in back-to-back 1,000-yard campaigns, the first Bills player to achieve that mark since LeSean McCoy.
But Cook has also had some deficiencies, especially in his pass-blocking skills. The Bills usually took Cook off the field on third downs, replacing him with backup Ty Johnson.
Bills Locking Down Other Players
While there is no imminent deal with Cook, the Bills did make some key moves on other players. As Beane mentioned, the team gave cornerback Chrisitan Benford a new four-year contract worth $76 million, locking down the top player in their secondary.
The team already locked down two other members of the 2022 draft class, giving extensions to wide receiver Khalil Shakir and linebacker Terrel Bernard. The team also extended defensive end Greg Rousseau and quarterback Josh Allen.
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