We Really Are Spoiled (Brandin Cooks)

[TomRalph]

So I've been asking myself the question recently... 'Has Brandin Cooks been worth what we traded for him?' 

When the trade was made, the hype train went supersonic with talking heads and fans alike claiming he'd be a beast in this offense and that it'd be one of the main factors why the team would go undefeated (remember those times?)

I think it is important to mention that the team traded for Cooks BEFORE Edelman tore his ACL. 

Cooks has made 60 receptions for 1,0003 yards and 6 TD's (and plenty of deep DPI penalties forced)

Am I on my own by thinking Cooks should have produced more, considering he was the only bonafide WR (excluding Gronk) once Edelman went down and considering the cost paid for him? I was expecting (hoping) to see more of an Anontio Brown-type production from Cooks but he seems to be being used sparingly.

What kind of production can we expect to see from Cooks going forward with Edelman returning? Do we really anticipate Tom not wanting to throw to his BFF? What would that mean for Cooks' production? What if those numbers reduce going forward to say 50 receptions, 800 yards and 3 TD's? Would that really be worth the 1st and change traded for him?

 

TL:DR: Brandin Cooks hasn't produced enough in an Edelman-less offense to justify the cost paid for him. 

[Deadpulse]

I was never a fan of the Cooks trade. He never struck me as a guy who could be THE guy in this offense. 

[CP3MVP]

He has been hurt by overthrows/underthrows and blantant no calls of DPI. At least 200 yards and 3tds have been robbed from him by factors out of his control 

Remember the Play in Denver were he had Harris beat but than he held his hand? 

 

Hes doing his job. Providing an elite deep threat and getting safety help over the top. Teams are scared ****less of him burning them 

[LD696]

45 minutes ago, TomRalph said:

Cooks has made 60 receptions for 1,0003 yards and 6 TD's (and plenty of deep DPI penalties forced)

Did you mean to say 1.0003 yards (which is horrible) or 10 003 yards (instant HoF induction)? 

I think the expectations for Cooks were (justifiably) very high, but his production didn't come as most would've expected. I think most people were expecting several huge, 100+ yards games, with lots of deep bombs and big plays - and a few gameday disappearances. Instead he's producing slowly and steadily, not in the explosive manner many were expecting.

On the other hand an Antonio Brown-type production was very unrealistic expectation to begin with. The offense still featured a healthy Edelman, Amendola, Hogan, Mitchell and White, who already proved to be productive and capable pass-catchers. Gronkowski's health was still in limbo, but when healthy we knew he can take a lot of receptions from anyone. Not to mention the expectations towards Burkhead, Gillislie and the run-game. Producing like Brown in this environment was highly unlikely imo.

Now, Gronk was mostly healthy during the season, Lewis and Burkhead provided a working running game, Amendola may quietly be having his best season as a Patriot, Hogan ate up a lot of targets at the start of the season and White also produced. The Oline had its troubles keeping Brady on his feet long enough to get the ball to Cooks (I assume he's usually not the first or second read). Despite these he's still the second most productive receiver on the team. So from this point of view I think his cost can be justified or at least worth one more year to evaluate.

As much as I love Edelman, at his age and wear-and-tear, his future as a productive player is very much in question. Cooks is a much younger option without a worrisome injury history, who already proved he can produce at a high level. He already spent (almost) a year in the system and will have another full offseason to build rapport with Brady, so I'd expect him to become a more integral part of the offense next year.

[Hunter2_1]

So I DID have high expectations. I thought he would be Moss-like, in that Brady finally has a speedster, number 1 type flanker. He's not that, but he's certainly been useful at stretching defenses and he's had a few REALLY big plays. Think of the Houston GWTD - does Edelman make that? I argue Edelman would be several steps behind 

[ChazStandard]

As of week 9/10 Cooks was top 5 in WR yards, and lead the league in ypc. The trouble has come, recently, from the OL not holding up long enough for Cooks to get downfield. Plus, injuries to Hogan, Mitchell and Edelman mean teams can really focus on Cooks. Not to mention that this is a system where 1st year WRs really struggle.

Put it this way - Cooks was only 23 when the season started (24 now), that's still practically a rookie. If, instead of trading for him, we had drafted a WR at 32 who put up the same numbers, is there any possibility we would be anything but thrilled?

Personally, if he can make catches like he did against the Texans, I think a first was steal.

[mission27]

3 hours ago, ChazStandard said:

As of week 9/10 Cooks was top 5 in WR yards, and lead the league in ypc. The trouble has come, recently, from the OL not holding up long enough for Cooks to get downfield. Plus, injuries to Hogan, Mitchell and Edelman mean teams can really focus on Cooks. Not to mention that this is a system where 1st year WRs really struggle.

Put it this way - Cooks was only 23 when the season started (24 now), that's still practically a rookie. If, instead of trading for him, we had drafted a WR at 32 who put up the same numbers, is there any possibility we would be anything but thrilled?

Personally, if he can make catches like he did against the Texans, I think a first was steal.

Yeah tbh the key is he’s still a kid and will get better, there are holes in his game but the potential is there to be a true #1 WR.  I’m happy with the trade.  

[CP3MVP]

4 hours ago, tonyto36 said:

I expected more out of him.  He's put up the sort of production I expected with Julian stealing targets.    Especially the past few weeks with all of our WRs banged up/out, we really needed him to step up and be "the guy" for Brady and he's been dominated.

He's been more Ted Ginn Jr. than Randy Moss, and you don't trade a first for Ted Ginn Jr.

 

Hes not “being dominated” they ignore him or overthrow/underthrow him.

Cooks has more 1,000 yard seasons at 24 than TGJ has had his entire career. That’s disrespectful to cooks 

[ashnathan]

I was super excited for Cooks, and although the numbers are there I expected more. To be honest, I am actually really disappointed with his compete level when challenged. He waits for the ball to drop to him, he needs to do a better job of extending himself to the ball at its highest point, should he do this his numbers would get a lot higher, but until he can address his YAC issues he will never be THE guy. 

[Apparition]

The only time I've been unhappy with Cooks was the 2nd Miami game, in which Xavien Howard ate his lunch when the Pats really needed him to step up.

[Soko]

On 12/29/2017 at 12:20 PM, tonyto36 said:

You trade a first for a WR expecting JJ/Brown production, not Marvin Jones (who has more yards, higher YPT, more TDs, more 1st downs, more 20+ yard catches, a worse QB, a worse coaching staff and a worse surrounding cast).

You have insanely high standards. So what, roughly 4 guys are worth first rounders (Julio, Brown, OBJ, Hopkins)? 

People expecting Moss were either ignorant to Cooks as a player, blindly hyped by speed, or both. Moss was an all-time talent with incredible height, elite speed (even in his NE days), and insane ball skills. Cooks is smaller, slower, and much more inclined to not make the incredible catch. He’s not Moss and was never going to be him - which isn’t a knock. No one in the league is a Randy Moss.

[tonyto36]

7 minutes ago, Yin-Yang said:

You have insanely high standards. So what, roughly 4 guys are worth first rounders (Julio, Brown, OBJ, Hopkins)? 

People expecting Moss were either ignorant to Cooks as a player, blindly hyped by speed, or both. Moss was an all-time talent with incredible height, elite speed (even in his NE days), and insane ball skills. Cooks is smaller, slower, and much more inclined to not make the incredible catch. He’s not Moss and was never going to be him - which isn’t a knock. No one in the league is a Randy Moss.

I don't expect him to literally be Moss.  I meant Moss in the sense of true #1 who can carry a team.   Otherwise trading a first round pick for two year role player is not worth it.

[m haynes]

Great pick up even if he doesn't make a catch. What hurt his value to this team this year was JE getting hurt. You can only imagine what out offense would be like if we had JE with Cook on the outside.  Gronk and JE would have so much room to work. you would have one on one coverage on one of the three that would make this offense unstoppable.

[Aztec Hammer]

Great pickup even if he's limited in some of the things he can do. He's practically an old rookie age but already had the experience and production factor that you don't get with a late first round pick. I doubt the Pats would have found as significant a first year contributor with that pick in the draft.

He was never going to be Moss, he's not physically imposing and is a bit of a specialist. I think he would've done better with Edelman in there but losing Edelman made him that much more important. He adds a vertical threat on any given play that helps to open up the underneath and intermediate parts of the field.

On a side note, as there ever been anyone as electric and rapid as him that is so bad after the catch?

[Nex_Gen]

Let's be realistic for a second here. The Patriots are lining him up as the X receiver 98% of the time, a position that just isn't a focal point of the offense. Pair that with Brady's deep ball issues and 65/1000/7 is an impressive output. 

 

I thought they would have used him in the Edelman role to some capacity after the injury and as the season went on. Hogan and Dola were hurt one after the other, and we barely have Britt and Mitchell now who can line up at X and gives the Pats some flexibility with Cooks. We'll see if they implement anything new in the playoffs.....