{"id":256224,"date":"2025-11-25T10:00:23","date_gmt":"2025-11-25T15:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=256224"},"modified":"2025-11-25T06:23:24","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T11:23:24","slug":"top-4-brandin-cooks-team-fits-ranked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/11\/25\/top-4-brandin-cooks-team-fits-ranked\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 4 Brandin Cooks Team Fits, Ranked"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks officially cleared waivers yesterday, which means he’s now free to sign with any team he wants. A first-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft<\/a>, Cooks used to be one of the game’s premier deep threats, recording 1,000-yard seasons with the Saints, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams, and Houston Texans. While the veteran has lost a step in his later year, he could be an intriguing depth piece for the right organization.<\/p>\n

Top 4 Brandin Cooks Team Fits, Ranked<\/h2>\n

The present-day version of Brandin Cooks won’t singlehandedly guide any team to victory, but he can still help the right organization. While he understandably didn’t want to spend what could be his final year on a losing Saints roster, the following four organizations could sign him as they pursue a Lombardi trophy.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

4. Baltimore Ravens<\/h3>\n

After a slow start to the season, the Baltimore Ravens are once again in control of the AFC North. Sitting pretty at 6-5, this team showed they’re still incredibly talented and can win games with Lamar Jackson in the lineup<\/a>. However, while the two-time MVP quarterback has played well, he hasn’t played up to his usual standard this year. Jackson might not be 100% after battling injuries early in the year, and the team should add someone like Brandin Cooks to ease his burden.<\/p>\n

Zay Flowers is a good possession receiver, and Mark Andrews is still a reliable tight end, but those are the only players on the roster with more than 21 receptions. Baltimore could use another wide receiver, and Brandin Cooks is the best option at this point in the season. If nothing else, he can spend some time on the practice squad and prove to Baltimore that he still has something left in his tank.<\/p>\n

\"Lamar
Nov 9, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) leaves the field after the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

3. Buffalo Bills<\/h3>\n

Things are not looking good for the Buffalo Bills, especially on the offensive side of the ball. The team has one of the worst groups of wide receivers in the game, and offensive coordinator Joe Brady’s bland scheme<\/a> isn’t helping anyone. The Bills can still win games when Josh Allen plays like a demigod<\/a>, but Buffalo loses whenever he’s anything less than perfect.<\/p>\n

The Bills need to take a long, hard look in the mirror at the end of the season. However, in the short term, the team could kick the tires on Brandin Cooks. Buffalo’s wide receiver depth chart primarily consists of players who are at their best in the slot, and Cooks can line up wide. If nothing else, he brings a different skillset to the table and his ability to track a ball downfield should make him an ideal fit with the rocket-armed Allen.<\/p>\n

\"Josh
Nov 20, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) dives for a first down against the Houston Texans in the first quarter at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

2. New England Patriots<\/h3>\n

Brandin Cooks may not have much left in his tank, but Drake Maye could be the quarterback to optimize the rest of his career. While Matthew Stafford is currently the MVP frontrunner<\/a>, Maye has been the second-best quarterback in football and throws the prettiest deep ball in the game. Currently sitting atop the AFC with a 10-2 record, the Patriots have a legitimate chance to go on a deep playoff run for the first time since Tom Brady was under center.<\/p>\n

Cooks isn’t the same deep threat he was when he helped Brady win MVP in 2017<\/a>, but he can be a welcome veteran presence for this offense. New England has young, exciting players in Kayshon Boutte and Demario Douglas, along with tested veterans in Stefon Diggs and Mack Hollins, but they lack a pure speed threat. Cooks can’t beat defenses as consistently as he could back in the day, but he can be a solid situational player for this organization.<\/p>\n

\"3
Nov 2, 2025; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) passes against the Atlanta Falcons during the first half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

1. Pittsburgh Steelers<\/h3>\n

After a hot start to the season, the wheels are falling off the wagon in Pittsburgh. Aaron Rodgers is battling an injury, the defense isn’t playing up to its usual standard, and they’re officially tied with the 6-5 Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North. Head coach Mike Tomlin<\/a> went all-in on the 2025 season, signing Rodgers and acquiring big names like Jalen Ramsey, D.K. Metcalf, and Jonnu Smith because he wanted to go on a deep playoff run for the first time in nearly a decade. Right now, it doesn’t look like that will happen.<\/p>\n

With the trade deadline passed, Brandin Cooks might just be the best option this team has. Metcalf has played well in his new environment, but someone else needs to step up for this team, especially if the hand injury hinders Rodgers<\/a> down the stretch. Tomlin will probably get this team to the playoffs with a nine- or 10-win season, but that’s not good enough anymore. They must try something to get this team out of neutral.<\/p>\n

\"Aaron
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) scrambles away from Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Myles Murphy (99) in the second quarter of the NFL Week 11 game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh on Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025. The Steelers led 10-6 at halftime.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks officially cleared waivers, allowing him to sign with any team in the league<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2376,"featured_media":255444,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6431,10,3,5,28,9],"tags":[354,7638,7659],"class_list":["post-256224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-teams","category-ravens","category-bills","category-patriots","category-saints","category-steelers","tag-brandin-cooks","tag-ravens-featured","tag-saints-featured"],"modified_by":"David Latham, Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2376"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=256224"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":256225,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/256224\/revisions\/256225"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/255444"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=256224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=256224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=256224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}