PITTSFORD, N.Y. (AP) — Reigning NFL MVP Josh Allen won’t be playing in the Buffalo Bills' preseason opener against the New York Giants on Saturday, coach Sean McDermott said Thursday.
As for James Cook’s status, McDermott said the team has no choice but to move forward with or without the starting running back, who skipped his fourth straight practice as part of a contract standoff that shows no signs of resolution.
“I have a ton of respect for him. And the position that he’s in right now is not an easy one,” McDermott said, in his first opportunity to address Cook’s hold-in, which began on Sunday. “That said, we have to move forward as a team, and I’m sure he respects that.”
McDermott noted that while Cook has declined to practice, he is taking part in walk-through sessions and attending team meetings. The fourth-year player, who was the NFL’s co-leader with 16 touchdowns rushing last season, has chosen not to practice in a bid to secure a long-term contract extension to a deal that expires in March.
As for Allen, the coach said he’s yet to determine whether the quarterback will play at all this preseason in part to avoid exposing him to injury.
“I have to make sure I protect him as best that I can,” McDermott said as the Bills held their final practice at their training camp facility in suburban Rochester, New York. “He always wants to be out there, believe me, he does. He’s highly competitive. ... So I know this is not easy for him in that regard, but it’s the right thing to do.”
Backup Mitch Trubisky is scheduled to start with the rest of Buffalo’s available starters expected to play much of the first quarter.
The Bills injury list is long with 11 players held out of practice on Thursday, including receivers Khalil Shakir (ankle) and Curtis Samuel (calf), safety Taylor Rapp (knee) and kicker Tyler Bass (pelvis). Rapp was added to the injury report on Thursday and is expected to miss about a week.
McDermott said the team is considering signing a kicker to play on Saturday, with backup running back Ray Davis potentially testing his leg on an emergency basis as he’s done in practice the past week.
One question is how quickly Davis can change from his cleats to a kicking shoe, especially if he’s involved in a touchdown play and required to attempt the extra point.
Allen is fine with not playing by saying he’s simply following McDermott’s orders.
As for Cook’s contract standoff, Allen backed the running back while noting the situation is out of his control.
“I’m a big advocate of everybody getting theirs and getting paid. And sometimes you got to do what you got to do,” Allen said.
“James is who he is and he’s one of the best running backs in the league, and it would be crazy not to say we don’t want him out there,” he added. “We desperately want him here with us, and hopefully something can get done.”
Allen also shed light on one of the more amusing clips from the Bills' debut on HBO's “Hard Knocks” series broadcast on Tuesday. A mic’d up Allen is caught having an on-field discussion with several offensive linemen on the topic of Galileo.
Allen winked, saying he was acting on a dare from his linemen, who bet the quarterback couldn’t work the astronomer into a conversation and aired on the series.
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Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott watches practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Sunday, July 27, 2025, in Pittsford, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) warms up during practice at the team's NFL football training camp, Sunday, July 27, 2025, in Pittsford, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A judge on Wednesday gave the Trump administration time to respond to a request to suspend an immigration crackdown in Minnesota, while the Pentagon looked for military lawyers to join what has become a chaotic law enforcement effort in the state.
Plumes of tear gas, bursts of chemical irritants and the screech of protest whistles have become common on the streets of Minneapolis, especially since an immigration agent fatally shot Renee Good in the head on Jan. 7 as she drove away.
Agents have yanked people from cars and homes and been confronted by angry bystanders who are demanding that officers pack up and leave.
“What we need most of all right now is a pause. The temperature needs to be lowered," state Assistant Attorney General Brian Carter said during the first hearing in a lawsuit filed by Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Local leaders say the government is violating free speech and other constitutional rights with the surge of law enforcement. U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez promised to keep the case “on the front burner” and gave the U.S. Justice Department until Monday to file a response to a request for a restraining order.
The judge said these are "grave and important matters,” and that there are few legal precedents to apply to some of the key points in the case.
Justice Department attorney Andrew Warden suggested the approach set by Menendez was appropriate.
The judge is also handling a separate lawsuit challenging the tactics used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal officers when they encounter protesters and observers. A decision could be released this week.
The Department of Homeland Security says it has made more than 2,000 arrests in the state since early December and is vowing to not back down. The Pentagon is preparing to send military lawyers to Minneapolis to assist.
CNN, citing an email circulating in the military, says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is asking the branches to identify 40 lawyers known as judge advocate general officers or JAGs, and 25 of them will serve as special assistant U.S. attorneys in Minneapolis.
Pentagon spokesperson Kingsley Wilson appeared to confirm the CNN report by posting it on X with a comment that the military “is proud to support” the Justice Department.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to emails from The Associated Press seeking more details.
It’s the latest step by the Trump administration to dispatch military and civilian attorneys to areas where federal immigration operations are taking place. The Pentagon last week sent 20 lawyers to Memphis, U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said.
Mark Nevitt, an associate professor at Emory University School of Law and a former Navy JAG, said there's concern that the assignments are taking lawyers away from the military justice system.
“There are not many JAGs but there are over one million members of the military, and they all need legal support,” he said.
Jonathan Ross, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who killed Good, suffered internal bleeding to his torso during the encounter, a Homeland Security official told The Associated Press.
The official spoke to AP on condition of anonymity in order to discuss Ross’ medical condition. The official did not provide details about the severity of the injuries, and the agency did not respond to questions about the extent of the bleeding, exactly how he suffered the injury, when it was diagnosed or his medical treatment.
There are many causes of internal bleeding, and they vary in severity from bruising to significant blood loss. Video from the scene showed Ross and other officers walking without obvious difficulty after Good was shot and her Honda Pilot crashed into other vehicles.
She was killed after three ICE officers surrounded her SUV on a snowy street a few blocks from her home.
Bystander video shows one officer ordering Good to open the door and grabbing the handle. As the vehicle begins to move forward, Ross, standing in front, raises his weapon and fires at least three shots at close range. He steps back as the SUV advances and turns.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has said Ross was struck by the vehicle and that Good was using her SUV as a weapon — a self-defense claim that has been deeply criticized by Minnesota officials.
Chris Madel, an attorney for Ross, declined to comment on any injuries.
Good’s family, meanwhile, has hired a law firm, Romanucci & Blandin, that represented George Floyd’s family in a $27 million settlement with Minneapolis. Floyd, who was Black, died after a white police officer pinned his neck to the ground in the street in May 2020.
The firm said Good was following orders to move her car when she was shot. It said it would conduct its own investigation and publicly share what it learns.
“They do not want her used as a political pawn,” the firm said, referring to Good and her family, “but rather as an agent of peace for all.”
Waving signs reading “Love Melts ICE” and “DE-ICE MN,” hundreds of teenagers left school in St. Paul and marched in freezing temperatures to the state Capitol for a protest and rally.
The University of Minnesota, meanwhile, informed its 50,000-plus students that there could be online options for some classes when the new term starts next week. President Rebecca Cunningham noted that “violence and protests have come to our doorstep.” The campus sits next to the main Somali neighborhood in Minneapolis.
Associated Press reporters Julie Watson in San Diego, California; Rebecca Santana in Washington, D.C.; Ed White in Detroit; Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis; and Graham Lee Brewer in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, contributed.
Federal immigration officers are seen Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Hundreds of protesters gather in front of the Minnesota State Capitol in response to the death of Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Protesters gather in front of the Minnesota State Capitol in response to the death of Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Protesters gather in front of the Minnesota State Capitol in response to the death of Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Federal officers stand guard after detaining people outside of Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
People visits a makeshift memorial for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A person is detained by federal agents near the scene where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
