It was one year ago where Brandin Cooks was in the Super Bowl spotlight. He was playing for the triumphant New England Patriots, searching for the franchise’s sixth Super Bowl title. Cooks was one of the many receiving targets for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who was just coming off an MVP season.
Despite Tom Brady throwing for a record 505 yards and three touchdowns, it would be the Philadelphia Eagles who would emerge victorious. From the Philly Special to a game winning strip fumble, Eagles coach Doug Pederson would dethrone Bill Belichick and the Patriots 41-33. As the confetti fell from U.S. Bank Stadium, Cooks would leave the stadium with the expected gloom that comes from losing a big game. His one catch for 23 yards was not the debut he would have hoped for.
On Sunday, suiting up for the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl LIII, is a chance at revenge and redemption for the young receiver.
“It’s a blessing,” says Cooks. “It is not by accident that I am back here. I am so blessed with the opportunity to be on this big stage again and I am going to let everything else take care of itself.”
Brandin Cooks Gets to Face Old Team in Super Bowl
Cooks Fueled By Father’s Death to Succeed
Brandin Cooks’ drive for success stems from an early age. Growing up below the poverty line and without a dad since the age of six forges a certain mental toughness within an individual. For Cooks, it is the inspiration that pushes him to be his best.
“I would get jealous of other kids with dads: ‘What would it be like if I had a dad? How good could I be? Would our family be better?’ I used to get mad that we couldn’t do stuff — go shopping, go out to restaurants, go on vacations. I needed rides to school, but I was embarrassed for people to see how small our house was,” Cooks says. “One day, Fred [my brother] sat me down and said the reasons we ate beans and bread so much, it’s because it’s all we could pay for. And that’s when it hit me.”
The impact of Cooks’ father’s death was transmitted throughout his family. His mom, Andrea Cooks, would yearn for the days when her boys would jump into her and her husband’s bed every Saturday morning. Brandin’s brothers, Fred, Worth Jr. and Andre, struggled with the overwhelming responsibilities of life without their dad. As the older brothers would state, it was Brandin who was able to escape and break the cycle through his gifted talents on the football field.
“Sometimes I don’t think he really understood the magnitude of what was going on with our dad’s death; he just kept indulging in his love of sports,” said Andre. “Me and my other brothers, the three of us didn’t have any definite plans or a path. Brandin did. He was the one who was going to make it. We all recognized that, no matter what else was going on in the family, we recognized that he was the one who could get it right.”
Cooks’ High School and College Career Molded Him into Future NFL Star
Brandin Cooks’ booming personality can fill a room. His cheek to cheek smile and contagious enthusiasm could be felt both on and off the field. It is no big surprise why Cooks was the talk of Lincoln High School in Stockton, California.
As a senior, Cooks had 66 receptions for 1,125 yards and 11 touchdowns. Initially committed to UCLA, Cooks decided to go to Oregon State, where he can focus on improving his performance on the field, rather than be washed up by materialism and opulence. Receivers coach Brent Brennan, who was at Oregon State when Cooks was a freshman, was thrilled when he decided to play for the Beavers.
“He has an uncommon maturity,” Brennan said. “As a freshman, we’d watch practice tape, and he was blowing everybody away because he was winning his one-on-one so much. And he was controlling the matchup, always always positioning himself to go against Jordan Poyer, one of the best defensive backs in the country. I knew then he was different. Most true freshmen aren’t looking to line up and possibly get their (butt) kicked every time. But he loved that challenge.”
When he was a junior at Oregon State, Cooks exploded. With 128 receptions, 1,730 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns, the young receiver set PAC-12 records. His performance would earn him the Fred Biletnikoff Award for Outstanding Receiver and the honor of being a consensus All-American. His dream of becoming an NFL receiver became a reality, when he was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft. It would be the culmination of hard work and perseverance, fueled by the adversity in his childhood.
“Even though I was the youngest, I was the only one who made it a positive,” Cooks says. “I can’t forget it, but I can let it fuel me … I realized it young, and they realized it late. But they can still do it. I really believe I can be the one to change Andre’s life.”
Cooks Thrives with Los Angeles Rams
On April 3, 2018, the New England Patriots would send Brandin Cooks to the Los Angeles Rams. That summer, Cooks would sign a five-year, $81 million extension, becoming one of the Rams premier targets. An identity that he had not experienced while playing under Bill Belichick’s regime.
From the beginning, it was clear that Cooks would merge impeccably into Rams coach Sean McVay’s high octane offense. When Rams receiver Cooper Kupp went down to injury, it would be Cooks to step up and become the number one receiver for quarterback Jared Goff. Evidenced by their 281.7 passing yards per game (5th in NFL) and 421.1 total offensive yards per game (2nd in the NFL), the Rams were an offensive juggernaut this season. Cooks would have a career high 1,204 receiving yards with the Rams, demonstrating that the trade truly paid off for the star receiver.
In the postseason, Cooks’ success continued. In the Divisional Round against the Dallas Cowboys, Cooks put up four catches for 65 yards in the Rams 30-22 victory. Against his former team the Saints in the NFC Championship, Cooks generated seven catches for 107 yards. According to Coach McVay, whenever the Rams need a boost on offense, they rely on Cooks to be the driving force.
“Everyone who has been around Brandin, you can’t talk enough about him,” says McVay. “Not only his on field production, but he is a special human being. Guys like him are why I love coaching. His demeanor is flawless, he goes about his business and he is receptive in the team meetings, which translates to success in practice and on the field.”
Super Bowl LIII a Redemption Opportunity for Cooks
On Sunday night in Atlanta, Brandin Cooks will be searching for redemption, trying to beat his former team who he lost with in last year’s Super Bowl. To beat Tom Brady and the Patriots is no easy task. Bill Belichick will definitely utilize his secondary, trying to take Cooks out of the game due to his ability to break free for big plays. But for Cooks, the experience of the heartbreaking loss last year has molded him into a tougher, stronger human being.
“This is a defense that has been playing at a high level, particularly their corners and safeties,” says Cooks. “In this postseason, they have been doing such a great job holding guys to points. We have to just trust the process and don’t do anything out of the ordinary. We are excited for the matchup.”
Off the field, Cooks’ enthusiasm is felt by the entire team. Nothing resembles kindness and generosity more than Cooks surprising Rams team custodian Garcia with fully paid for tickets, airfare and accommodation to Super Bowl LIII. A small gesture goes a long way in becoming one of the most benevolent members of the Rams.
“He’s a part of our team,” says Cooks. “This is a we, not me atmosphere. We just wanted to make sure he and his son were a part of the experience to witness the Super Bowl.”
Hopefully for Garcia and the rest of the Rams, Cooks will able to experience the confetti falling on him this time.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
