*Welcome to the Dallas Cowboys, Brandin Cooks!*

I’m going to try to make this as quick as possible, but it’s going to be a long read.

And I’m going to include objective and subjective information, so let me be up front; I like this trade!

But I want to go through my entire thought process when I woke up to read the words Dallas Cowboys have traded a 2023 5th round pick and 2024 6th round pick to the Houston Texans for veteran wide receiver Brandin Cooks.

The Texans eat $6m, and the Cowboys will pay Cooks $12m in 2023.

Those be the facts. Now, let’s break down the trade objectively.

Cooks Improves The Wide Receiver Core

*I know this is two years old but it is still relevant…*

The addition of Brandin Cooks greatly improves the Dallas Cowboys wide receiver group. At least for two seasons.

He’s averaged 962 yards over the last 3 seasons, with a dud in 2022, catching a yard shy of 700 and only 3 touchdowns. Yuck.

But that was with Davis Mills, Tyrod Taylor, Jeff Driskel, and Kyle Allen (who?!) throwing him the football for 2 of those 3 years.

Cooks has definitely had some boom and bust seasons, most notable busts being 2019 and 2022, but again, he had some suspect QBs throwing his way in 2022, and in 2019 Jared Goff was starting for the Rams.

No scoff at Goff, and I said that mostly just because it rhymed, but he’s not on the same tier as Dak Prescott or Deshaun Watson.

No Need To Reach In Draft

*Jerry Jones is happy with Batson Stephen and Dallas Cowboys Coach Big Mike McCarthy.*

After all is said and done, and it’s not said and done yet, but let’s pretend it is…

The Dallas Cowboys enter the 2023 NFL draft with a top 2 cornerback duo in the NFL after adding Stephon Gilmore, and have a wide receiver core of Lamb, Cooks, and Gallup.

Compare that to last year when Lamb, Brown, Houston, and Fehoko suited up to kick off the season, I can confidently say that this new look is a massive upgrade.

And to think that the Cowboys only gave up two 5th round picks in 2023 for Gilmore and Cooks? That’s an incredible increase in value.

If you look at the history of 5th round picks, less than 25% will end up on an NFL roster, and in most cases they are on the practice squad.

Sure, Tom Brady was selected in the 6th round, but even the Patriots passed on him 5 times.

Like the great Dr. Farthing said in the historically epic Dirty Work starring the late, great Canadian Norm MacDonald, “Hindsight is 20/20 my friend”.

And the value of Gilmore and Cooks is leagues above the potential a 5th round draft pick would bring.

This alleviates the need to reach for a wide receiver or cornerback who is falling in the draft.

I’m not saying they shouldn’t make a move if that move has a high chance of increasing our ability to win, but I am saying the pressure isn’t there to push the front office into a tight space where they need to jump more than they should.

Another Injury Prone Veteran

*Brandin Cooks injury potential for 2023. Thanks for the image, Draft Sharks!*

It’s true that Brandin Cooks missed 4 games last year with a calf injury (that he got in practice, to boot). That sucks.

But nagging, reoccurring injuries are something that scares me.

That, and a college player who is coming off a significant injury are two of my biggest concerns.

I weigh injury risk very heavily on my decision-making scale. That I operate from my couch. Whilst drinking tea and eating biscuits.

Cooks has had 3 body parts effected by major injuries; his head, his left hand, and his right leg.

The head is the most concerning, not only because concussions are something that don’t tend to “get better” like muscle or bone injuries, but he’s also, as well, too, had 3 head issues.

Once in 2015, once in 2018, and once in 2019.

Brandin Cooks only missed 2.5 games due to the concussions, so that’s a positive. But it’s an issue nonetheless that does concern me.

I think there is a chance that Brandin Cooks misses two games this season.

He has a 34% chance of missing 2 quarters in 2023 on Draft Sharks and has the highest rated durability for minor injuries, so he’s a dawg who has some bite left in him!

Call Him 7-11 Because Cooks Is Always Open

*This is a real 7-11. Like Brandin Cooks, it is always open.*

I’m sure you can find enough highlights to prove me wrong, but I’m going all in on this one.

When I visit Thailand, the Land of Smiles, there is an abundance of 7-11’s. It’s nice, because I’m in a foreign country, but there are these remnants of home littered throughout the beautiful South East Asian country.

Littered is the wrong term, because there is a lot of litter everywhere, and so it’s more like a beacon of welcoming snacks and beverages. Also, cigarettes; don’t smoke, but are you really even in Thailand if you’re not smoking? I think not.

The reason 7-11 means so much to me is that when I was a young man, me and BWB1 used to film a bunch of skits as a group called the Green Knights way back when Jackass was a TV show and CKY2K had just come out.

We would hang around 7-11 which we donned as a “Sev Sesh”, before going out and reeking joyous havoc on our beautiful hometown.

This has nothing to do with Brandin Cooks, I just wanted to tell that story. But the metrics don’t lie!

In fact, Brandin Cooks has a higher separation (1.83 yards per target) than DeAndre Hopkins (1.77 yards).

AND Cooks has a lower cushion (5.02 yards at the line of scrimmage) than Hopkins (5.7 yards).

That means he doesn’t have as much room to break free. It could also mean that defenders respect Hopkins more than Cooks.

But I’m not making that argument. Oh, and tag on his 60% contested catch rate; he’s not elite, but he’s no schlub.

The bottom line is Cooks is always open. Prove me wrong.

And also check out our breakdown on Brandin Cooks. It’s from last season, and we had to watch 3 full Houston Texans games, so we would really appreciate it given the torture we put ourselves through to make it!

No More Excuses For Dak Prescott

We can confidently go into this season without the “yea, but” in our back pocket.

Cowboys Nation, we need to admit it. We lied to ourselves all last year when we believed in the wide receivers we put out on the field.

What the fuck were we thinking, seriously?

That’s all out the window, now. Dak Prescott has no excuses with Lamb, Cooks, and a healthy Gallup lining up to catch the ball.

Sure, Schultz is leaving and that leaves a big chunk of Prescott’s targets up in the air, and personally I don’t think Ferguson and Hendershot are filling that void at all, but in terms of wideouts, Dak Prescott has the toys he needs.

Pray hard now that all these boys show up for week 1!

Dallas Cowboys Will Be His 5th Team

Something that is a little concerning is that Brandin Cooks is heading to his 5th NFL team.

He might be a bit of a problem child.

On the other hand, he had a bunch of shitty hands he was dealt.

Cooks had a cup of coffee in New England and made it to the Super Bowl after being traded for a 1st and 3rd round pick, before being shipped to the LA Rams for another 1st round pick, where Jared Goff would throw him the football for 2 seasons.

Cooks ended up in Houston with a better quarter back in Deshaun Watson, but Watson’s tenure was cut short for the Texans due to his insatiable need for an unsuspected handjob, and Cooks ended up with a rotating quarterback carousel stocked with a bunch of nobody’s.

I haven’t really read anything negative on his character, so I have to assume these were just value trades.

But it’s something to make note of and keep an eye on.

He’s Only 5’10”, 185 LBS

*Brandin Cooks shooting an arrow through the haters.*

I love men with big bodies. I want a big body receiver in Dallas. Brandin Cooks is not that.

He’s a little taller and heavier than me, but not vacation me. Vacation me is heavier than Brandin Cooks. That’s not good, for either of us.

If he was a draft pick, I am not excited about this player. But Cooks is a veteran that has been welcomed by a bunch of teams.

He’s 29 years old, so he’s probably coming down from his peak, but not significantly enough where the “washed up” label is fitting.

The height and weight of a player is significant, and this certainly doesn’t solve the Dallas Cowboys need for a big boy with smooth hands, but it does satisfy the need for a consistent receiver who has played in a bunch of different offences at the NFL level.

Other WR Options Are Better

*DeAndre Hopkins searching for a new team.*

DeAndre Hopkins, Stefon Diggs, Jerry Jeudy, OBJ. These names have also come out of the Dallas Cowboys rumour mill.

First, every single free agent is tied to the Dallas Cowboys.

Second, Jerry Jones wants every single free agent at some point during the off season.

Third, Cooks doesn’t negate another WR signing in the free agency.

I’ll expand on those now.

Do I think Hopkins, Diggs, Jeudy, or OBJ are upgrades over Cooks? Absolutely. Actually, not OBJ. But the difference between Hopkins and Cooks in terms of contribution to the game of football isn’t significant.

Body size? Yes. Big play ability? I’ll give that to Hopkins and Diggs for sure.

Cost? Not even close. A 5th round for Cooks, compared to a 2nd round for Hopkins? Come on, man. I’m not saying I wouldn’t take Hopkins for a 2nd round pick, but we aren’t in a vacuum. And Diggs was fun, but it was never going to happen.

I will admit, I would still trade Hopkins for a 2nd round pick even with Brandin Cooks coming to the Cowboys. Probably. Maybe.

But this is a game of chess. A second round for Hopkins means we would be giving up someone like Alabama’s Eli Ricks, UCLA’s Zack Charbonnet, TCU’s Steve Avila, or Northwestern’s Adetomiwa Adebawore (I had to copy and paste that).

There will even be some WRs available in the 2nd round who are big bodies like Michael Wilson (6’2, 209lbs), A.T. Perry (6’5, 205lbs), and Rashee Rice (6’3, 206lbs).

When I look at the combination of Cooks and one of those guys I just listed above right there, compared to just Hopkins, I can’t make the argument that the latter is better for the Dallas Cowboys.

Final Thoughts

*Brandin Cooks faces off against Stephon Gilmore; they will now be teammates in Dallas*

I like the trade.

Without knowing this trade happened, and in an alternative Marvel Universe where we get Hopkins for a 2nd round pick instead, I would be pleased as punch.

But I can’t help to think I might be wearing rose-coloured glasses.

The more I think about the value of a second round pick, the more I have to pull back from pushing the “go” button.

The Dallas Cowboys are about 50% over the last 10 years when it comes to second round picks panning out, including Sam Williams, Trevon Diggs, Connor Williams, Randy Gregory, and DeMarcus “Coach” Lawrence.

In fairness, Sam Williams hasn’t panned out, and Williams and Gregory are not even in the same conversation as Diggs and Lawrence.

So to be even more conservative, the Dallas Cowboys have about a 20% home run chance with the second round pick.

If Williams turns it up in 2023, I would say they are hitting .300!

Breaking it down, the 2nd round pick has risks, but the ceiling of that pick is just too damn high and I can’t pretend the Brandin Cooks trade didn’t happen, because it did.

The dust has settled on this one, and the Dallas Cowboys ended up with a huge upgrade at a position that was in terrible need of a renovation.

And it cost us a 5th round dog shit pick and $12m on the books.

I just can’t find a reason to complain.

Breaking Down The Brandin Cooks Trade To The Dallas Cowboys