The Buffalo Bills have locked in their star running back for the long term, coming to terms on a four-year, $46 million contract extension with James Cook. The deal includes $28.82 million guaranteed (per Spotrac), with a $9 million signing bonus, and a $7.4 million bonus being optioned in 2026, and an average annual salary of $11.5 million.
The initial numbers always seem nerve-racking, even when the money isn’t coming out of our pockets, but the team can easily get out of the deal in 2028. If the Bills want out, they would have paid $22,035,000 of Cook’s contract and would incur a $8,040,000 dead-cap hit. So when all’s said and done, James Cook’s deal is essentially a three-year deal at $30.1 million.
General manager Brandon Beane not only ensures Buffalo has a top play-maker moving forward, but the deal also frees almost $2 million in 2025 cap space. Cook was set to make $5.2 million in 2025 which doubles to $10.355 million now but his cap hit goes from $5.7 million DOWN to $3.51 million by converting most of his salary to signing bonus and pushing the cap hit into the future.
James Cook cap hit breakdown
Here is what each year will look like broken down in cap hits.
2022 signing bonus: $355,374
2025 signing bonus: $1.8 million
Workout bonus: $75,000
Base Salary: $1.28 million
Cap hit: $3.510,374 million
2025 cash: $10.355 million
Signing bonus: $1.8 million (prorated)
2026 option bonus: $1.48 million (prorated)
Workout bonus: $250,000
Per-Game bonus: $340,000 ($20,000 per game)
Base salary: $2,010,000
Salary cap hit: 5.88 million
2026 cash: $10 million
Signing bonus: $1.8 million (prorated)
2026 option bonus: $1.48 million (prorated)
Workout bonus: $250,000
Per-Game bonus: $340,000 ($20,000 per game)
Base Salary: $9,130,000
Salary Cap Hit: $13,000,000
2027 Cash Paid: $9,720,000
Signing bonus: $1.8 million (prorated)
2026 option bonus: $1.48 million (prorated)
Workout bonus: $250,000
Per-Game bonus: $340,000 ($20,000 per game)
Base salary: $9,681,000
Salary cap hit: $13.551 million
2028 cash: $10,271,000
Escalators: $1,000,000 (playing time + playoff berth)
Dead Cap Hit | EARLY OUT: Total Cash Paid $30.1 M ($22,035,000 Already allocated against cap and $8,080,000 Dead cap hit)
Signing bonus: $1.8 million (prorated)
2026 option bonus: $1.48 million (prorated)
Workout bonus: $250,000
Per-Game bonus: $340,000 ($20,000 per game)
Base salary: $10,410,000
Escalators: $1,000,000 (playing time + playoff berth)
Salary cap hit: $14.28 million
2029 cash: 11 million
Dead Cap Hit: $4,760,000 (includes a 2030 void year option bonus of $1,480,000)
Cap savings if cut: $9.52 million
2026 option bonus: $1.48 million (prorated) – accelerates if not extended
Cook’s consistent production makes this deal significant for Buffalo’s offensive future. Beane has once again structured a deal to reward and extend a player the Bills organization drafted while still maintaining long-term flexibility.
The Bills invested heavily in contract extensions for their own players this offseason, including: Josh Allen: 6 years/$330 million, James Cook: 4 years/$46 million, Gregory Rousseau: 4 years/$80 million, Christian Benford: 4 years/$76 million, Khalil Shakir: 4 years/$53 million, and Terrel Bernard: 4 years/$50 million.
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