James Cook is entering his fourth year in the NFL and is seeking a big contract extension. But is he worth what he’s asking for?
James Cook Stats Overview
The former second-round pick has spent the last three seasons with the Buffalo Bills and has been steadily improving the past two seasons. In the 2023-24 season, Cook ran for 1,122 yards and paired it with 445 receiving yards and six total touchdowns.
In the 2024-25 season, Cook’s rushing and receiving stats dipped, rushing for 1,009 yards and totaling 258 receiving yards. Touchdowns, however, were a different story.
Cook jumped from six total touchdowns to 18, with 16 of them being rushing touchdowns. This ties him with Jahmyr Gibbs and Derrick Henry for the most in the 2024-25 season.
Although Cook has increased his production each season, is it worth the whopping $15 million a year contract he’s asking for? The answer? It’s complicated.
If Cook were to receive his $15 million a year price, he would rank third amongst NFL running backs for salary per year. This would tie him with Derrick Henry, and sit behind only Saquon Barkley and Christian McCaffrey.
Despite the contract issues, James Cook has been a full participant at Bills minicamp so far and seems to be focused on next season.
Is The Production Worth $15 Million?
When talking about the top five running backs in the NFL, James Cook’s name is not often included. It’s hard to imagine giving a running back who barely eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards the same money as one who nearly broke 2,000 and tied Cook in rushing touchdowns.
James Cook offers a lot of value to the Bills and has had good production the past two seasons, but if he wants his $15 million a year, he will have to take a major step up this season. Even then, it’s still a tough decision to make.
If James Cook were to have a monster 2025-26 season, it would help justify the asking price. However, it would be difficult to give him that money because he has not been consistent in production.
Another thing that makes it hard to justify such a large contract is that Cook’s production in the passing game is matched by Ty Johnson. This opens up the idea of being able to lose Cook, keep Ty Johnson as primarily a pass-catching back, and draft a running back to complement Ray Davis in next year’s draft.
Should The Bills Re-Sign Cook?
James Cook is a very core piece of the Bills’ offense and the face of the running back corps. As a rusher, he complements Ray Davis well, giving the Bills a thunder and lightning backfield. The issue is that the production is not high enough to justify $15 million a year.
If Cook were to up his production significantly in the 2025 season to a ballpark of 1,500 rushing yards, 350 receiving yards, and 15 total touchdowns, it would make the $15 million a year much more justifiable.
The Bills should re-sign Cook, but not for his asking price— at least not yet. If Cook replicates his production in the 2023 and 2024 seasons, he should be re-signed, but for a more reasonable price. Somewhere between $8-12 million.
The James Cook contract ordeal is nothing short of a difficult situation filled with a lot of what-ifs. Cook’s next contract could place him among the league’s highest-paid backs, but to get there, his production has to match the projection.
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