Dynasty Player Profile: Brandin Cooks (2022 Fantasy Football)

Recent Production

*Based on PPR scoring

Career Contextualization

Brandin Cooks was a first-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, selected 20th overall by the New Orleans Saints. They made a draft-night deal with the Arizona Cardinals to move up and acquire Cooks in a draft class headlined by Sammy Watkins, Mike Evans, and Odell Beckham Jr.

While Cooks has arguably had the best career of any wide receiver taken in the first round that year, he’s been traded three times in his eight-year career.

After spending three years with the team, the Saints traded Cooks to the New England Patriots in 2017. The Saints got a first and third-round pick while the Patriots received Cooks and a fourth-round pick. Cooks was quickly on the move again, getting sent to the Los Angeles Rams in 2018. The Patriots received a first and sixth-round pick, while the Rams received Cooks and a fourth-round pick. Then after two years with the Rams, they traded Cooks to the Houston Texans in 2020. They received a 2020 second-round pick and the Texans got Cooks and a 2022 fourth-round pick.

While Cooks was the talk of trade conversations for most of the offseason, the Texans opted to keep the veteran in the building. Houston signed Cooks to a two-year extension worth just under $40 million earlier this month, including $36 million guaranteed. Cooks is now tied to the Texans through the 2024 season.

Cooks has finished as a top-20 wide receiver in PPR scoring six times in his eight-year career despite playing for four teams. Furthermore, he has finished as a top-20 wide receiver every season since his rookie year except in 2019. Cooks has also ended the year as a top-16 wide receiver five times, including in 2020 with the Texans.

He has spent most of his career playing alongside other talented wide receivers. In New Orleans, it was Michael Thomas. In Los Angeles, Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods were present. Even in his first year with the Texans, Will Fuller had a breakout season. However, none of them kept Cooks from consistently producing for his fantasy owners.

Some will claim Cooks is injury prone. But that is far from the truth, as he has played in 96.5 percent of the games in his career. Cooks reportedly suffered five concussions during the first six years of his NFL career. The most notable one came in Super Bowl LII with the Patriots after he took a massive hit to the head by Malcolm Jenkins. Thankfully, Cooks reportedly hasn’t suffered a concussion in the past two years.

Current Situation

Cooks finds himself in a fantasy-friendly situation. The Texans lack a proven weapon opposite him, yet it hasn’t stopped Cooks from producing at a high level. Last season, Cooks finished as the WR20, averaging 14.5 PPR fantasy points per game. More importantly, Cooks was very consistent weekly.

He scored at least 17.9 fantasy points in 50 percent of his games last season. Cooks also scored over 11.5 fantasy points in all but six games in 2021. Despite catching passes from Deshaun Watson, Tyrod Taylor, and Davis Mills the past two years, Cooks has remained a consistent WR2 or better for fantasy owners. Below shows Cooks’ per-game breakdown over the past two years with all three quarterbacks.

*Per game basis.

While Cooks averaged 14.5 fantasy points per game for the entire 2021 season compared to 15.5 in 2020, the dip in his production came in the six games Taylor started. Once Mills took over as the starter and built chemistry with Cooks, the veteran wide receiver put up on par numbers as he did in 2020. Furthermore, Cooks’ 13.1 fantasy points per game with Taylor would have made him the WR31 last season on a points-per-game basis. At this point, it’s hard to say Cooks isn’t quarterback-proof.

General Prediction for 2022 and Rest of Career

Cooks is currently 28 years old but will turn 29 early in the 2022 NFL season. Yet, that isn’t something fantasy owners should fear.

Everyone tends to panic when their wide receivers turn 30 years old, which Cooks won’t do till the 2023 season. However, wide receivers with limited injury history can remain productive until 32 or 33. Therefore, Cooks has another likely three-four years of solid production left in his career. Now that he is under contract with the Texans through the 2024 season, Cooks should catch passes from Mills or a better quarterback for the rest of his prime years.

Fantasy managers should continue to expect mid-WR2 value with upside from Cooks. The Texans don’t have any proven weapons on offense besides the veteran receiver. Last year’s third-round pick, Nico Collins, has plenty of upside and should have a more significant role in the offense this year. But, he is not a threat to Cooks and the 24-27 percent target share he has seen over the past two years.

Buy, Sell, or Hold?

The answer to this question comes down to the current status of your team. Rebuilding teams should trade away Cooks before the NFL draft if possible. Houston could use either the 13th or 37th overall pick on a wide receiver. While a rookie shouldn’t dramatically impact Cooks’ fantasy value, it will severely impact his perceived value.

Contending teams should hold onto Cooks if he is already on the roster. Even with the possible addition of a rookie wide receiver, Cooks will see enough volume and will be efficient enough with them to maintain consistent WR2 level production for the next few years.

If you have a contending team but currently don’t roster Cooks, his value is subjective, like all fantasy players. Hypothetically, you shouldn’t trade for Cooks if you have a stacked wide receiver unit. He is not a player who will put your team over the top, but I would trade a mid-to-late first-round rookie pick in this year’s rookie draft if you need a reliable WR2.

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Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.