Sanity prevails for the Bills and James Cook

It needed to happen. And it finally did.

The new contract negotiated between the Bills and running back James Cook is, on the surface, a win-win move for a team in the Super Bowl window. Cook got financial security, and the Bills have a guy who is happy with his situation and ready to fuel a championship run.

As usual, there’s plenty of deliberate smoke and fluff about the deal. As several league sources have observed, the claim that Cook’s has received the most guaranteed money of any running back in five years is factually incorrect. Cook’s guarantee is $30 million; Saquon Barkley’s was $36 million.

We’ll eventually get the full Cook deal and break it down. The first question becomes how it compares to the contract recently signed by Rams running back Kyren Williams, who like Cook had completed three NFL seasons.

Whatever the terms, Cook is under contract for four years. The drama has ended. Even if, as one source remarked, the running back market is going backward, again.

Now, as the Bills get ready for Week 1, both player and team need to go forward while avoiding the temptation to overdo it until he’s properly acclimated after his recent absence from practice.