Bill O’Brien is back at it again. On Thursday, the head coach and de-facto general manager traded a second-round pick for wide receiver Brandin Cooks and a 2022 fourth-round pick. Cooks, of course, has a long history as a dangerous deep threat throughout his time in the NFL. With DeAndre Hopkins in Arizona, Cooks should be the top option in the passing attack. However, does he still have his former speed and the ability to play like a legitimate star?
Can the Houston Texans Get the Most Out of Brandin Cooks?
Brandin Cooks never played with Bill O’Brien, but he should have a vague familiarity with the offense. The former first-round pick spent the 2017 season with the New England Patriots, serving as the de-facto top receiver during Tom Brady‘s third MVP campaign. O’Brien, of course, comes from the Bill Belichick coaching tree and runs a similar scheme to New England’s. There will obviously be some differences between the two playbooks, but Cooks should adjust quickly.
Chances are, this familiarity is the reason O’Brien sent away a second-round pick in a receiver-heavy draft. Even though the incoming wide receiver class is one of the most talented in recent memory, they probably won’t make too much of a contribution in 2020. The transition from college to the NFL is hard enough and will be nearly impossible with a shortened offseason. Cooks, however, won’t have to deal with these growing pains and should be able to contribute right out of the gate. While the concussions are clearly a concern, they didn’t limit his explosiveness and ability to change the game with one play. If he’s healthy (big if), the Texans should be able to get something out of the speedy receiver.
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The biggest question with Cooks is if he can get healthy and stay healthy. Cooks suffered multiple concussions in 2019, but that wasn’t his first battle with head injuries. The 26-year old has suffered at least five concussions during his six years in the league, including the one that knocked him out in Super Bowl 52. Concussion issues typically don’t improve as you get older and keep taking hits, so Cooks will carry an advanced risk of re-injury. However, this offense could be dangerous if Cooks can stay on the field.
How Dangerous Houston’s Offense Can Be
The Texans are essentially bringing the Air Raid to the NFL. This is an oversimplification, but Air Raid offenses are all about getting speedy players to stretch the field and big plays on a regular basis. This type of offense requires a quarterback that excels at pushing the ball downfield, and Deshaun Watson certainly fits that bill.
Will Fuller and Kenny Stills both possess blazing speed and excel at erasing a large portion of the field on just a few receptions. Combining these two with Brandin Cooks is just unfair for opposing defenses. While Cooks obviously won’t have the same impact as a guy like DeAndre Hopkins, he can still affect the opposing gameplan. Playing Cover 1 against this offense is essentially begging for a big play, and this speed element will force defenses to limit their overall playcalling, at least when all three are on the field.
It’s no secret that Deshaun Watson is considerably better when he has a healthy Will Fuller. Fuller’s ability to stretch the field allows Watson more space to work underneath while also giving him a reliable deep threat. Unfortunately, Fuller has struggled to stay on the field throughout the early portion of his career. If injury strikes again, Cooks has a similar skill set and should be able to fill in for Fuller. Losing Hopkins obviously hurts, but this offense should be fine as long as they have at least one reliable deep threat. Ultimately, the Cooks trade isn’t the heist of the century, but it’s a decent move that should help Houston in 2020 and beyond.
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