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Schrager 'pleasantly surprised' James Cook reported to Bills campy (1:09)
Peter Schrager tells Pat McAfee wherefore he's amazed to spot James Cook astatine Bills minicamp portion he's seeking a declaration extension. (1:09)
Alaina GetzenbergJun 10, 2025, 12:53 PM ET
- Alaina Getzenberg covers the Buffalo Bills for ESPN. She joined ESPN successful 2021. Alaina was antecedently a bushed newsman for the Charlotte Observer and has besides worked for CBS Sports and the Dallas Morning News. She is simply a postgraduate of the University of California, Berkeley.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Buffalo Bills moving backmost James Cook was successful attendance Tuesday for the archetypal time of mandatory minicamp contempt seeking a declaration hold arsenic helium enters the last twelvemonth of his rookie deal.
Bills manager Sean McDermott said that helium anticipates Cook practicing successful the sessions "as acold arsenic I know, astatine this point."
"I recognition James," McDermott said. "Business is business. At the extremity of the day, I cognize helium loves being astir this squad and the guys successful the locker country and helium loves to play football.
"So, I respect his determination to beryllium present and beryllium amongst the squad and get immoderate enactment successful today, and we're looking guardant to that."
The Bills rewarded 3 different members of the 2022 draught people with four-year extensions -- wide receiver Khalil Shakir, linebacker Terrel Bernard and cornerback Christian Benford. The Bills had conversations with Cook's team, but yet the 2 sides were not adjacent to a deal.
"We're conscionable taking it 1 time astatine a time," said McDermott, who added that helium is readying connected Cook besides being astatine grooming campy connected time. "I mean, we've each been astir this league a agelong clip and everyone has their ain situations. They're each different.
"So, I deliberation again, we request everybody to win, and we request everybody to practice, and truthful we expect James to beryllium determination and beryllium determination connected clip but besides recognize his situation."
Cook is coming disconnected his champion year, tying a franchise grounds with 16 rushing touchdowns, which besides tied for the NFL lead. The different 3 players with astatine slightest 15 rushing touchdowns past play -- Derrick Henry, Jahmyr Gibbs, Josh Jacobs -- fertile among the apical 25 moving backs successful mean yearly pay, with 2 of them -- Henry and Jacobs -- successful the apical six.
Cook's 2,638 vocation rushing yards are the astir among players from the 2022 draught class.
Cook has publically shared his tendency for a caller contract, including going unrecorded connected Instagram and pinning "15 mill [per] year." He has an mean wage per twelvemonth of $1.5 million, which ranks 51st among moving backs successful 2025. Fellow Bills moving backs Ty Johnson ($2.5 million) and Reggie Gilliam ($2 million) are up of him.
