The Buffalo Bills and James Cook are not closer to a contract agreement than they were months ago, and it has forced the running back, who was a participant in practices prior to training camp, to on Monday make the official move to sit out.
Given Buffalo has a little under $1 million in cap space, getting a deal done for Cook, who will command roughly $15 million APY, is going to be a hard task, actually nearly impossible without some contract restructures and some salary cap massaging.
With the Bills seen as one of the genuine Super Bowl contenders, having Cook "holding in" and missing reps isn't ideal, and general manager Brandon Beane is taking the situation personally.
“There's been communication since we've been here,” Beane said on One Bills Live. “This is my ninth season here, I've never had a player missing a practice over contract. So I take personal responsibility for that. I don't like that. One of my jobs is to make sure I'm eliminating any distractions from our team and our organization.
"Unfortunately, it's that's where it's at from a decision that he and his camp made the last couple days. Hopefully soon we can get some resolution one way or the other. Whether that's a deal or whether that's, hey, there's no deal now, let's play it out and go from there.”
With Cook set to play on the final year of his rookie contract, the potential for injury and what that could do for his earning potential in the future is likely what is driving this "hold in," and we have seen many players take this route.
But if the Bills are to claim their first-ever Super Bowl, Cook will need to play a key role on offense, and not getting the proper conditioning of reps in practice, that could be problematic.
However, that is where he and the Bills are, and we aren't sure how this will end, but one thing is for certain, James wants his new deal and isn't practicing until he gets it.
