James Cook absent from OTA's

[NewEra]

Just watched cooks 2024 highlights.  Then watched Ray Davis’ career highlights. Cooks speed is a difference maker. And he runs through contract now too. If he could only pass protect. 

I used to think I’d pay him 12M aav max, but now I’d be good with 15 if it were structured like @GunnerBill proposed.  I also used to think he was a lock to sign elsewhere after this season, but I’m starting to think he could return.  He’s our 2nd best player on O and most dangerous player with the ball in his hands.  
 

any chance Beane slaps the tag on him?

 

Edited 15 hours ago by NewEra

[Richard Noggin]

43 minutes ago, NewEra said:

Just watched cooks 2024 highlights.  Then watched Ray Davis’ career highlights. Cooks speed is a difference maker. And he runs through contract now too. If he could only pass protect. 

 

 

I just love this typo so much for us. So many implications. Deliciously loaded.

 

Lately in this thread I'm seeing reasonable extension proposals being discussed rationally. Difficult to argue with much of it, but then again, doesn't it seem like Beane's happy to get one more super motivated season (we'd presume) out of Cook, even though that could/would price him out of Buffalo's range? I just assume Beane is fine with drafting another mid-round RB next year and rolling with Davis, Johnson, and the rookie. Seems like a position they're willing to embrace turnover and roll with rookie deals and select/inexpensive vets. 

 

That could change. But Beane seems fine with RB Money Ball. 

Edited 14 hours ago by Richard Noggin

[BillsFanForever19]

9 hours ago, BillsFan130 said:

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/james-cook-potential-holdout-not-something-i-want-to-talk-about-right-now

 

Going to be interesting to see if Cook holds out or not. (I can't see how it would make any sense from his side)

 

3 hours ago, Doc Brown said:

“I necessarily don’t want to talk about it right now, because it’s like, it’s something I want to hold in to myself . . . just let the business take care of the business,” Cook said,

 

He is aware that people can see stuff he posts online.  I assume.

 

The article also states:

 

Quote

Cook was at a Celebrity Poker Tour event in Las Vegas and he was asked about his contract situation. Cook said “however it works out, it works out” and that he works to make sure that “the business is a business, and just do whatever I can to always be there for my teammates.”

 

So that kind of flies in the face of holding out to a point that he'd miss any regular season time. 

 

Between this and Beane's recent comments that Cook's been in contact with people in the building that lead him to believe this won't be an issue this season - I imagine he's not going to miss more than maybe the first week of Training Camp, if anything.

 

I've mentioned this a few times before but it feels like what his brother Dalvin did in 2020. Wherein he threatened he may hold out and it became a story - then he ended up reporting the first day of Training Camp. The family knows that missing any of the season is going to make it harder to get what he wants.

Edited 12 hours ago by BillsFanForever19

[Doc Brown]

1 minute ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

 

 

The article also states:

 

 

So that kind of flies in the face of holding out to a point that he'd miss any time. 

 

Between this and Beane's recent comments that he's been in contact with people in the building that lead him to believe this won't be an issue this season - I imagine he's not going to miss more than maybe the first week of Training Camp, if anything.

 

I've mentioned this a few times before but it feels like what his brother Dalvin did in 2020. Wherein he threatened he may hold out and it became a story - then he ended up reporting the first day of Training Camp. The family knows that missing any of the season is going to make it harder to get what he wants.

The only leverage he has is trying to garner public sympathy and/or threaten to weaken the "culture" that Beane/McDermott have built.  He won't sit out because that means giving up more money than he's made the first three years combined.  It also makes another team way less likely next off-season to hand out any double digit yearly figure contract you're trying to get right now.  Plus, Beane can always use the threat of a franchise tag even if he does have another year similar to last year.  The NFLPA loves to say every time it's time to re-up the contract that they want to get rid of the franchise tag but never do.

[DrDawkinstein]

11 hours ago, Returntoglory said:

My God! Derrick Henry at 8 Mil? Cook's definitely on crack...

 

6 hours ago, BillsFanForever19 said:

 

Derrick Henry was over 30 years old with recurring foot issues. He also had already made his big money from Tennessee and took less than he could have from other teams to play for a contender. On top of that, the contract market is reset on a yearly basis with the rise in salary cap. 

 

The situations are completely different and not really comparable. To focus only on that and ignore the names and prices above that, like 30 year old Aaron Jones at 10m, Josh Jacobs at 12m, 29 year old Alvin Kamara at 12.5, without taking into account the insane numbers cut off at the top - is cherry picking.

 

Not only that, but it was never "$8M/yr".

 

The first year was a prove-it year where he only made a few mil because he was already over 30 years old. This year he is set to make $13M (as a 31 yr old RB), and Baltimore is now collectively the highest spending team at the RB position.

 

So good teams do spend on RBs. And contracts in the teens are not out of norm.

 

3 hours ago, Doc Brown said:

The only leverage he has is trying to garner public sympathy and/or threaten to weaken the "culture" that Beane/McDermott have built. 

 

Dang, you guys are DEVIOUS!

 

The best leverage he has is to show up and put up a season just like last year's.

 

If he does, I fully believe Beane will get to his number. The only problem is, if he does put up another good season, his number probably goes up to closer to $17M next year. The tag is definitely in play at that point.

[dancing_joker]

Cook was drafted by Beane to be a 3rd down back…do people forget that? He’s great at what they thought he couldn’t do. Now you’re going to trust these same evaluators to find another rb in the draft? You found gold, pay the man and enjoy the ride. He’s your only offensive stud not named Josh Allen