With his contract dispute ongoing, Buffalo Bills running back James Cook showed up for Sunday’s mandatory practice but did not participate. Instead, the 25-year-old stood off to the side and spent a short amount of time on an exercise bike.
After practice, when asked why he did not participate, Cook offered just three words: “Oh, nothing. Business.”
Sunday marked the first time Cook did not participate since requesting a contract extension during the offseason. The two-time Pro Bowler, who shared the league lead with 16 rushing touchdowns last season, wants to become one of the highest-paid running backs in the NFL.
Cook also was asked whether he was holding out or planning to suit up for Monday’s practice.
Again, Cook kept his response short: “Business.”
The Bills provided no comment on Cook, who is in the final year of his rookie contract. Cook — who did not attend Buffalo’s voluntary offseason team activities but did participate in the mandatory three-day minicamp as well as the first eight practices of training camp — was not on the team’s list of injured players leading up to Sunday’s practice.
Entering his fourth year in the league, Cook has put together back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. His 2,638 rushing yards are the most among his peers in the 2022 draft class. Yet he is not on the list of Bills’ 2022 draftees — wide receiver Khalil Shakir, linebacker Terrel Bernard and cornerback Christian Benford — who have been rewarded with extensions. The Bills traded their first-round pick from that season, cornerback Kaiir Elam, to the Dallas Cowboys in March.
“Sometimes you can’t get on the same page or sometimes you’re trying to fit it in,” Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane told reporters at the start of camp. “There’s times guys have left here that we really wanted. We just couldn’t make it work.
“But I can tell you, I’m hopeful, when we’re sitting here at next year’s training camp, that James Cook is out there practicing and still representing the red, white and blue.”
–FIeld Level Media
