Brandin Cooks is going back to where it all began.
The 11-year NFL veteran is signing with the Saints, NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport, Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero reported Friday, returning to the team that made him the 20th overall pick of the 2014 draft. New Orleans announced that Cooks will play on a two-year contract.
The signing is significant for a couple of reasons. Cooks is going back to the Saints, for whom he hasn't played since the 2016 season, and it's also the first time Cooks has joined a team via free agency in his career.
Cooks' professional career has truly been a trade-filled odyssey. He began as a rising star in New Orleans, logging two 1,100-yard receiving seasons in his first three campaigns before the Saints traded him to the New England Patriots, with Cooks playing a key part in their journey to Super Bowl LII. New England then traded him to the Los Angeles Rams. Cooks caught passes from Jared Goff and helped the Rams reach the Super Bowl (where they lost to his former team, the Patriots) in the 2018 season. In 2020, the Rams traded Cooks to the Houston Texans, for whom he would log his last two 1,000-yard receiving seasons, an achievement that is exponentially more impressive considering the last such season came with Davis Mills and Tyrod Taylor at quarterback.
Cooks has spent the last two seasons in Dallas, where he filled a secondary role alongside CeeDee Lamb and totaled 80 catches for 916 yards and 11 touchdowns. At 31 years old, Cooks finally reached the open market for the first time in his career and used it to complete the circle of his NFL journey.
Throughout Cooks' career, contenders have long viewed him as a missing piece for their offense and have moved assets in order to acquire him. This time around, though, he's taken on a new identity.
The Saints needed proven talent at receiver, and while he might not be producing at the same rate he once did in previous stops, Cooks will be a welcomed addition in New Orleans. The Saints have been ravaged by injury at the position in recent years and are likely very happy to add a player who has played in double-digit games in every one of his 11 seasons.
With a two-year deal, perhaps this is the fitting final stop for Cooks on his winding NFL journey. We'll find out just how much he has left in the tank when he's spending the fall and winter running routes in the same uniform in which he launched his career.
