James Cook is on an island.
The Buffalo Bills running back is the last of the team’s five starters set to play on an expiring rookie contract in 2025. And it seems like it might take a while before an agreement is reached between the two sides.
Cornerback Christian Benford agreed to a four-year, $76 million extension Saturday, joining fellow 2022 draft class members Terrel Bernard and Khalil Shakir, along with 2021 first-round pick Greg Rousseau to receive extensions during the offseason. That leaves Cook as the odd man out for now.
The two-time Pro Bowler has said on social media that he is seeking $15 million per year on his next contract, something only two other running backs — Christian McCaffrey and Saquon Barkley — are making in the NFL. After the Benford deal was finalized, Bills general manager Brandon Beane didn’t rule out extending Cook, but for now the team was focused on the draft later this month.
It appears both sides are seeking leverage in negotiations. And the Bills prioritized positions like pass rusher and cornerback that are more difficult to come by and they settled on negotiations both sides were closer on terms.
“Love Jimbo, proud of his success,” Beane said at the NFL annual meetings Sunday. “... his reps and him 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. And so we moved on to the guys that we were more on the same page with. And at this point, we're on to the draft once we got Benford done. We're going to, I don't see us doing any deals anytime soon.”
Beane said that doesn’t mean the Bills won’t sign any free agents before the draft, but extensions were more complex situations when it comes to managing the salary cap. According to OverTheCap.com, the Bills currently have $4.454 million in cap space for 2025.
The Bills made a handful of moves to bolster the offense early in free agency, extending Shakir and quarterback Josh Allen, while re-signing running back Ty Johnson and adding former Chargers receiver Joshua Palmer. But most of the offseason has been geared toward retooling the defense.
Buffalo is committed to receivers Palmer, Shakir, Keon Coleman and Curtis Samuel, along with tight ends Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox for 2025. The Bills remain steadfast in the development of Coleman and Kincaid — the team’s last two top picks — while it would cost the Bills $21 million to cut Knox and $12 million to trade Samuel and neither are likely to have a big trade market.
Beane didn’t balk at the idea of bringing back Amari Cooper, who remains a free agent, but he doesn’t seem in a rush to make any significant moves on offense. The Bills had one of the most efficient offenses in the last 25 years, joining the 2007 Patriots, 2018 Chiefs and 2020 Packers as the only teams to average three points per drive since 2000.
Both Beane and head coach Sean McDermott expressed confidence in the current receiving group and don’t believe the Bills need a true No. 1 receiver.
“Needs? I wouldn't say needs, but we'll look for competition,” Beane said. “I would say our offense did pretty good last year. … We like the addition of Josh Palmer to our group. We feel like he's a guy who really fits what we like to do, kind of another 'positionless' wide receiver. … There is still time to add more players. But am I sitting here going, man, we've got a hole there? No.”
It’s unlikely the Bills enter Week 1 with only four receivers on the 53-man roster. It wouldn’t be a shock if they chose one at some point in the draft.
The Bills have taken a receiver — nine total — in all but one draft since McDermott became head coach in 2017, including each of the last five. But seven of the ...
