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The Buffalo Bills are under pressure to finally get to the Super Bowl during the 2025 NFL season. Buffalo will need all hands on deck if they want to make that ambitious goal a reality. To that end, the Bills finally put an end to one of this offseason's biggest storylines on Wednesday morning.
The Bills have finally agreed to a contract extension with star running back James Cook, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Cook will receive a four-year extension worth $48 million, including $30 million guaranteed.
Cook was set to earn $5.27 million in base salary from his rookie contract in 2025. His new deal averages $12 million per season in new money, which is quite the pay raise.
Now Buffalo now have Cook locked down for years to come.
Cook's contract dispute with the Bills was one of the bigger storylines surrounding the team this summer. He stopped practicing at training camp on August 3rd as part of his hold-in.
Negotiations seemingly took a turn on Tuesday. Bills coach Sean McDermott noted that Cook's negotiations “changed” but would not elaborate on exactly how. Cook notably returned to training camp practice on Tuesday as well.
Cook now has a new contract extension less than 24 hours later.
James Cook earned his contract extension with the Bills
James Cook truly earned his contract extension with the Bills.
Cook is coming off back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons, including a monster 2024 campaign. He rumbled for 1,009 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns last season, which was tied for the most in the NFL. It also tied a Bills single-season franchise record.
Cook also averaged 4.9 yards per carry in 2024, which was the sixth-most in the NFL among backs with at least 250 carries.
Now that the Bills have a long-term commitment from Cook, it will be interesting to see if his usage changes at all in 2025.
Buffalo has deployed a “running back by committee” approach over the past few seasons. As a result, Cook only played on 49% of the team's offensive snaps in 2024.
If the Bills give Cook more touches this fall, it could help them get over the hump and into the Super Bowl.
