ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Running back Marshawn Lynch isn't going anywhere, as far as Buffalo Bills general manager Buddy Nix is concerned.
Without discounting the growing trade speculation involving Lynch, Nix said Wednesday that he has no intention of dealing the 2007 first-round draft pick, who has grown unhappy living in Buffalo.
"Our intention is for Marshawn to be here," Nix said during the team's annual pre-NFL draft luncheon. "He's under contract. We think he's a good back. We need two backs, and our intention is for him to be here. All this trade talk, it's not coming from us."
Asked if Lynch had requested a trade, the first-year GM said it's not up to the player to decide if he'll be dealt.
"He's under contract," Nix said. We're going to do what's best for the Bills."
Lynch's future with the team became a question after he failed to attend the team's voluntary conditioning program, which began two weeks ago. More questions were raised when Bills coach Chan Gailey said he hadn't spoken to Lynch and that only Nix had.
On Wednesday, Nix said he expects Lynch to attend the team's two mandatory minicamps in June.
"We expect him to be here. We want him to be here. Obviously, it's his decision," Nix said. "This is voluntary. We need Marshawn, and we expect him to show up when it's mandatory."
Lynch hasn't publicly spoken about his future, and his representatives have declined comment.
Selected to compete in the 2009 Pro Bowl as an injury replacement, Lynch has had a mercurial three-year stint in Buffalo since being drafted 12th overall out of California.
After a successful rookie season in which he had 1,115 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, Lynch's reputation took a hit following two run-ins with the law. In June 2008, he pleaded guilty to a traffic violation and admitted to driving off after striking a female pedestrian with his car near Buffalo's downtown bar district.
In March 2009, Lynch pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge in Los Angeles, after police discovered a semiautomatic handgun in a backpack of the trunk of a parked car in which the running back was sitting. He was sentenced to 80 hours of community service and three years probation.
The gun charge led to the NFL suspending Lynch for the first three games of last season.
Lynch has several times attempted to repair his image. He donated $10,000 last year to sponsor a community basketball tournament that was in danger of folding in Buffalo. He also served as the team's spokesman for a breast cancer research campaign in 2008.
For the past three years, Lynch has held a free youth football clinic in his hometown of Oakland.
Despite his community work, Lynch hasn't won over all of the Bills' fans, some of whom have turned against him. Lynch also has been the target of at least one false accusation. In January, he was accused of stealing $20 from a police officer's wife. Charges were never filed against him in the matter.
Lynch is coming off his worst NFL season after splitting starting duties with Fred Jackson last year. Lynch finished with 450 rushing yards and two touchdowns in 13 games, including six starts.
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press
