For the seventh time in his 12-year NFL career, Brandin Cooks will be playing for a new team, having officially cleared waivers after being released by the team that drafted him and re-signed during the offseason, the New Orleans Saints.
One of the premier players in the 2014 NFL Draft class, Cooks has long been championed for his speed and deep play abilities, with contender after contender trading for his services over the past decade to a near-record-breaking degree. But at 32, his best days may be behind him, as he's recorded fewer yards in 2024 and 2025 combined, 424, than he had in each of his 10 previous individual seasons with the Saints, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans, and Dallas Cowboys.
And yet, even if Cooks is no longer an elite deep threat, that doesn't mean he can't still help a good team succeed in the short term, even if it comes as a WR3 or even a WR4 on a really good team. He can still get vertical, has extensive experience in multiple schemes, and most importantly of all, brings the threat of speed to any offense any time he takes the field, which could force opposing defenses to change their plans in order to avoid being burned over the top.
With the playoffs rapidly approaching, there are multiple teams that should heavily push for Cooks' services, as he could change the outcome of a game, a drive, or even just a play, which could be the difference between advancing in the playoffs and an early vacation come January.
Brandin Cooks could return to the New England Patriots
After finishing out the 2024 NFL season with a top-5 draft pick, the New England Patriots have been one of the true bright spots of the 2025 campaign, with second-year quarterback Drake Maye leading the team to a 9-2 record through Week 11.
With a cost-controlled quarterback under contract for the next four years, some exciting young players around him like Will Campbell, Christian Gonzalez, and Cory Durden, and quality veterans like Mack Hollins, Stefon Diggs, and Harold Landry III filling out the roster, more than a few fans banged the table to see Mike Vrabel, Eliot Wolf, and company make a move at the trade deadline to further fortify the roster before the playoffs.
Unfortunately, that didn't happen, as the Patriots opted to sell off players like Keion White and Kyle Dugger from the previous administration instead of loading up on more win-now players, forcing Vrabel to roll with the players he has rather than fortifying his roster with someone new.
Enter Cooks, who could add some deep threat ability to the Patriots' offense like he did in 2017 for Tom Brady.
Despite moving on from deep threats like Tyquan Thornton and Ja'lynn Polk, the Patriots' offense has found plenty of success down the field in 2025, with Hollins, Diggs, Kayshon Boutte, Kyle Williams, and DeMario Douglas all averaging at least 10 yards per reception on the season. Add a deep threat like Cooks to that group, who has a career yards-per-reception of 13.3, and it could provide Vrabel with a solid sparkplug should any of New England's young players hit a wall down the stretch.
Brandin Cooks could return to the Los Angeles Rams
Like New England, Cooks has already played for the Los Angeles Rams, having spent two seasons with Matthew Stafford and company under Sean McVay from 2018-19.
In 2018, Cooks ultimately had his best season as a pro, catching 80 of the 117 balls thrown his way for a career-high 1,204 yards and five touchdowns. While that production was worth the 2018 first round pick – and change – Les Snead gave up to bring him to town, an underwhelming 2019 season made him expendable, with the Houston Texans acquiring the Oregon State product plus a 2022 fourth rounder for a second.
In 2025, the Rams are a good team with two of the very best wide receivers in the game in Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, but their WR3 spot has been underwhelming, with Tutu Atwell having four receptions for 164 yards, Jordan Whittington catching 13 balls for 130 yards, and the rest of the team's wide receivers under 100 yards through 11 weeks.
Granted, the Rams have succeeded with their tight ends-heavy packages in 2025, with 13 personnel becoming a fixture in Los Angeles and McVay hunting mismatches, but adding one more good wide receiver could provide even more optionality for Stafford and company.
Can Cooks play up to his 2018 or even his 2019 standards in 2025? Probably not, but considering what the Rams have in the cupboard, the bar isn't very high to become a quality contributor.
Brandin Cooks could finally sign with the Philadelphia Eagles
Unlike the Saints, Patriots, Rams, Texans, Cowboys, and Saints once more, Cooks has never played for the Philadelphia Eagles, but he has been linked to the team for pretty much his entire NFL career.
Cooks was famously one of the six players Chip Kelly considered drafting in 2014 before trading back and selecting Marcus Smith, and over his prime, the Eagles were seemingly always connected to the Oregon State deep threat as a potential long-term replacement for DeSean Jackson on the outside.
In 2025, those connections could finally come to fruition.
Now granted, like the Rams, the Eagles also have two very good wide receivers in AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith, and that duo has already complained about their touches in 2025, but behind the duo, WR3 Jahan Dotson has 10 catches for 194 yards, and Xavier Gipson has three, three, yards on just one reception.
Can the Eagles succeed with just three wide receivers with more than one reception? No, even if Jalen Hurts is one of the more conservative passers in the game, he still needs more weapons to unlock the Eagles' full offensive potential, which has been lacking in 2025.
Though he was far from a perfect player, Quez Watkins provided a certain level of verticality the Eagles have been missing ever since he fell out of favor in late 2023. While Watkins is technically still on the practice squad, Cooks is a more ready-made option who can bring some veteran leadership to a wide receivers room that is, shall we say, lacking in that department. If he can just get everyone on the same page, Cooks will be worth so much more than the production he delivers on the field.
