James Cook: We paid now, so let’s go play football

The contract dispute between the Bills and James Cook came to an official end on Wednesday when the running back put pen to paper on his four-year extension.

Cook had been staging a hold-in but got back to practice on Tuesday as a full participant.

“We paid now, so let’s go play football,” Cook said Wednesday, via Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.

Cook said he was “just trying to protect” himself with his hold-in. Given the prevalence of injuries around the league during camp, his approach more than made sense. But he added that he “kind of knew” that a deal was close when he got back on the field on Tuesday.

“Just trying to stay healthy and just get everything done before I can go out there and play with a clear mindset and just be locked in,” Cook said.

G.M. Brandon Beane noted that there was an understanding between the team and player that he needed to practice if the two sides were going to negotiate.

That’s what happened and now Cook is ready to continue contributing for a team with Super Bowl aspirations in 2025.