NFL CAREER – The New Orleans Saints added a speedy big-play threat to their offense, when they signed wide receiver Brandin Cooks, who started his NFL career with the club from 2014-16. Cooks, who was selected 20th overall by New Orleans in the 2014 NFL Draft, has six career 1,000-yard seasons, which is tied for the fifth-most in the NFL since he was drafted in 2014. Cooks joins Brandon Marshall as the only players in NFL history to record at least 1,000 receiving yards in a season with four different teams. Overall, he has played in 158 career games with 144 starts for New Orleans (2014-16), the New England Patriots (2017), Los Angeles Rams (2018-19), Houston Texans (2020-22) and the Dallas Cowboys (2023-24), posting career totals of 710 receptions for 9,532 yards (13.4 avg.) and 60 touchdowns, to go along with 58 rushes for 341 yards and two scores.
CAREER TRANSACTIONS – Agreed to terms with New Orleans Saints on a two-year contract (UFA-Dal.), 3/21/25; Activated by Cowboys from Injured Reserve, 11/27/24; Placed by Cowboys on Injured Reserve, 10/5/24; Traded to Dallas from Houston for a 2023 fifth round pick and 2024 sixth round pick, 3/19/23; Signed a two-year extension with Houston through 2024, 4/7/22; Traded to Houston from the LA Rams for a 2020 second round pick and a 2022 fourth round pick, 4/10/20; Signed a five-year extension with the LA Rams through 2023, 7/17/18; Traded to the LA Rams from New England for a 2018 first round pick and sixth round pick, 4/3/18; New England exercised fifth-year option, 4/29/17; Traded to New England from New Orleans for a 2017 first round pick and sixth round pick, 3/10/17; Placed by Saints on Injured Reserve, 11/18/14; Signed by Saints to a four-year contract, 5/18/14; Selected by New Orleans in the first round (20th overall) in the 2014 NFL Draft.
2024 – Started nine of the ten games he appeared in for Dallas Cowboys, recording 26 receptions for 295 yards with three touchdowns…Caught four passes for 40 yards with a 21-yard TD in season-opening win at Cleveland, Sept. 8…Finished with two receptions for 19 yards vs. New Orleans, Sept. 15…Returned from knee injury to make three catches for 16 yards with one touchdown on Thanksgiving vs. NY Giants, Nov. 28…Had a three-yard TD on Monday Night Football vs. Cincinnati, Dec. 9. 2023 – Traded from Houston to Dallas at the start of free agency and tallied 54 receptions for 657 yards and eight touchdowns over 16 games played and 15 starts for Cowboys…Made 125th career start and caught four passes for 36 yards and his first score of season – the 50th of his career - at LA Chargers, Oct. 16. Became 18th player in NFL history - first since Damiere Byrd in 2022 - with a receiving touchdown with five different teams…Produced nine receptions for 173 yards – both season-highs - and a TD against NY Giants, Nov. 12…Led the team with 72 yards on four catches and a score, surpassing 9,000 career receiving yards against Washington, Nov. 23…Caught four passes for 45 yards and a touchdown against Seattle, Nov. 30, his fifth TD reception of the year. Also successfully converted a two point conversion on a catch in the fourth quarter…Made six catches for 39 yards and a touchdown at Washington, 1/7/24, reaching 50 receptions (54) for the ninth time in 10 career seasons. Touchdown was his eighth of the season, tied for the second-most in career…Caught six passes for 47 yards and rushed once for six yards in NFC Wild Card Playoff against Green Bay, 1/14/24. 2022 – Served as a team captain and started all 13 games played for Houston, missing four, and caught 57 passes for 699 yards and three touchdowns…Played the first seven games of the season before missing a Thursday night tilt against Philadelphia, Nov. 3. Returned the next week and played three games before injuring calf at Miami, Nov. 27 and missing three weeks…Played the final three games of the season and had a season-best 106 receiving yards and a TD on six receptions in the season finale at Indianapolis, 1/8/23. 2021 – Totaled a career-high 90 receptions for 1,037 yards and six touchdowns while starting all 16 games, becoming the third Texans player to record consecutive seasons with 1,000 receiving yards…In the opener vs. Jacksonville, Sept.12, tallied five catches for 132 yards, with 128 of his yards coming in the first half. With a 52-yard grab, became 15th player in NFL history with a 50-plus yard reception in each of his first eight seasons …Posted nine receptions in back-to-back games – at Cleveland, Sept. 19 and against Carolina, Sept. 23 – to become the first Texans receiver with consecutive games of nine-or-more receptions since DeAndre Hopkins in 2019…Led the team with seven receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns at Jacksonville, Dec. 19, his eighth career multi-touchdown game and fourth game of season with 100-plus receiving yards. 2020 – Started all 15 games he played in his first season with Texans, became third player in team history with at least 1,000 receiving yards in a season, joining Andre Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins…Finished season catching 81 passes for 1,150 yards and six touchdowns…Reeled in eight receptions for 161 yards and one TD vs. Jacksonville, Oct. 11, his first 100-yard game as a member of the Texans…Finished with three receptions for 83 yards, including a 57-yard TD, at Jacksonville, Nov. 8, to become ninth player in NFL history with a 50-plus yard reception in each of his first seven seasons…Had best career performance with the Texans after posting career-high 11 receptions and a season-high 166 receiving yards while adding two touchdowns in the season finale vs. Tennessee, 1/3/21. 2019 – Started all 14 games played and finished with 42 receptions for 583 yards and two touchdowns…Notched a season-long 57-yard reception on the opening drive against the Saints, Sept. 15, and finished with 74 yards and one touchdown on three receptions…Logged his first 100-yard performance of the season at Cleveland, Sept. 22, with a season-high 112 yards on eight catches with a TD. 2018 – Played in 16 games for fourth consecutive season and finished with career-best 1,204 receiving yards on 80 recepÂtions in first season with Los Angeles Rams. Helped Los Angeles to a 13-3 regular season record and a Super Bowl LIII appearance. Recorded five receiving touchdowns and added 68 rushing yards and a score on 10 carries (6.8 avg.)…Led team with seven receptions and 159 receiving yards against Arizona, Sept. 16…Logged five games of 100-or-more receiving yards, including three consecutive 100-yard performances from Weeks 9-11 at New Orleans (Nov. 4), against Seattle (Nov. 11) and Kansas City (Nov. 19) - tied for sixth-longest streak in franchise history…In the NFC Championship at New Orleans, 1/20/19, caught seven passes for 107 yards…Tallied career postseason highs in receptions (eight) and yards (120) in the Super Bowl LIII loss to New England, 2/3/19. 2017 – Played in all 16 games, 15 starts, and totaled 65 receptions for 1,082 yards and seven touchdowns while adding 40 rushing yards on nine attempts. Single-season career-high average of 16.6 yards-per-catch ranked fourth in the NFL among receivers with at least 50 grabs. Joined Pittsburgh wideout Antonio Brown as the only receivers with at least 1,000 receiving yards and seven scores in each season from 2015- 17…Led the team with 131 yards and two TDs on five catches (26.2 avg.) vs. Houston, Sept. 24…Registered six catches for a season-high 149 yards and a TD against Oakland, Nov. 19, in Mexico City…Started all three postseason contests, including Super Bowl LII against Philadelphia, and registered 10 catches for 155 yards in the 2017 playoffs. 2016 - Appeared in all 16 games with 12 starts for Saints and recorded 78 catches for a career-high 1,173 yards (15.0 avg.) with eight touchdown grabs, his second consecutive season of at least 1,000 yards…98-and 87-yard scoring grabs gave him the club's longest and fourth-longest receiving TDs…First player in NFL history to have two TD catches of 85+ yards in his team's first five games. His receiving yardage total ranked seventh in the NFL and fifth in the NFC and his receiving touchdowns tied for sixth in the conference and tied for ninth in the league. Cooks' 78 receptions ranked second on the team, tied for 14th in the NFC and 24th in the league…Vs. Oakland, Sept. 11, made the start and caught six passes for 143 yards (23.8 avg.) with two touchdowns to tie a career-best, including a career-long 98-yard scoring grab that is the longest scoring play in team history and he rushed once for 11 yards…Recorded seven receptions for 68 yards to lead the team in catches at N.Y. Giants, Sept. 18…Vs. Carolina, Oct. 16, started and caught seven receptions for 173 yards (24.7 avg.)…Started at Kansas City, Oct. 23, recorded seven receptions for 58 yards and a nine-yard TD…Vs. Seattle, Oct. 30, started and caught four passes for 44 yards with a TD…Vs. Denver, Nov. 13, started and caught three receptions for 98 yards (32.7 avg.) with a 32-yard TD…At Carolina, Nov. 17, started and caught seven receptions for 42 yards. Became only the third player at the time to start his career with the Saints to record at least 50 receptions in his first three seasons, joining Danny Abramowicz and Reggie Bush…At Arizona, Dec. 18, recorded seven receptions for 186 yards (26,6 avg.), the fourth-highest receiving total in club record books with two TDs. With three receptions of 65 yards or more, became first Saint to do so in a single season since Kenny Stills in 2013. Became first Saint to have 1,000 receiving yards in back-to-back seasons since Marques Colston (2009-12).Became sixth player at the time to catch 20 TDs from QB Drew Brees…At Tampa Bay, Dec. 24, started and made five receptions for 98 yards, including a long of 42, advancing his career-high receiving yardage total to 1,154 and also becoming first Saint with back-to-back seasons of 1,100 receiving yards since Colston (2011-12). 2015 – Appeared in all 16 games, recording 84 grabs for 1,138 yards (13.5 avg.) and nine scoring grabs to lead the club in receptions, receiving yardage and touchdowns. His first campaign of at least 1,000 receiving yards, the first time a Saints wideout reached 1,000 yards receiving since Colston (1,154) and Lance Moore (1,041) in 2012, as he became only the fourth Saint at the time to record at least 1,100 receiving yards in a season (Colston, Jimmy Graham, Joe Horn). Receiving yardage total ranked sixth in the NFL and 14th in the NFC and his receiving touchdown total was tied for fifth in the conference and 14th in the league. 84 receptions ranked eighth in the NFC and 17th in the NFL, while his 22 third down receptions tied for 20th in league. 84 receptions were the most by a Saints WR since Colston (84-2010)…Started vs. Tampa Bay, Sept. 20, and caught team-high five passes for 62 yards…Started and caught seven passes for 79 yards, both Saints game-highs, at Carolina, Sept. 27…Made start at Philadelphia, Oct. 11, and hauled in five passes for 107 yards with one TD, his first career 100-yard receiving game…Started at Indianapolis, Oct. 25, and finished with team-high 81 yards on club-best six receptions, including a 47-yard grab…Caught six passes for 88 yards (14.7 avg.) with career-high two touchdowns vs. N.Y. Giants, Nov. 1…Started vs. Tennessee, Nov. 8, and recorded four receptions for 71 yards (17.8 avg.), including 38-yard TD…Started at Washington, Nov. 15 and posted five receptions for 98 yards (19.6 avg.), including a 60-yard grab and two scoring grabs to tie career-high. Also had a 11-yard rush…Started vs. Carolina, Dec. 6, and caught six passes for 104 yards (17.3 avg.), with a 54-yard TD. Catches and yardage were New Orleans game-highs…Vs. Detroit, Dec. 21, caught ten passes for 124 yards with one TD and returned two punts for 12 yards. Had a game-high 136 total yards from scrimmage…Started vs. Jacksonville, Dec. 27, and caught five passes for 123 yards (24.6 avg.) with a 71-yard TD and rushed a career-high four times for 10 yards for 133 yards from scrimmage. His team-leading fourth 100-yard receiving game marked the most by a Saint since Graham's six in 2013 and the most by a Saints WR since Colston's four in 2011. Became first Saint to surpass 1,000 yards receiving since Graham (2013) and the first New Orleans WR to do so since Colston (2012)…With his 12th career scoring grab, he moved into a tie for eighth place on the all-time list for Drew Brees TD targets at the time. 2014 – Played in ten games with six starts and totaled 53 receptions for 550 yards and three touchdowns and seven carries for 73 yards and a touchdown…Placed on Injured Reserve, Nov. 18…Played in first-career game at Atlanta, Sept. 7, and caught seven passes, tied for the most by a Saints rookie in their debut with Bush (9/10/06 at Cleveland), for 77 yards and a TD, rushing once for 18 yards. First career-reception came on a 32-yard pass play…Started first career game and caught three passes for 17 yards and had two carries for 31 yards at Cleveland, Sept. 14…Started and led the team with eight receptions for 74 yards vs. Minnesota, Sept. 21…Opened contest and caught a team-high nine passes for 56 yards, also rushing twice for 15 yards and returning a kickoff 12 yards vs. Tampa Bay, Oct. 5…Caught a team-high six passes for 94 yards, including a 50-yard reception for a TD, while picking up first-career rushing TD on a jet sweep that went for four yards vs. Green Bay, Oct. 26. At 21 years and 31 days old, became the youngest player in team history to score a rushing TD, and the first WR to score one since Robert Meachem did so on a 20-yard end around at Detroit, Dec. 21, 2008. Became the youngest player in NFL history to record both a TD catch and run in the same game…Played on offense and special teams while bringing in five catches for a team-leading 90 yards and a TD vs. San Francisco, Nov. 9.
COLLEGE – Started 29 of the career 38 games he played in at Oregon State as a two-year starter for the Beavers…Posted 226 receptions for 3,272 yards (14.5 avg.) with 24 touchdowns, also adding 61 carries for 340 yards (5.6 avg.)…Also performed well in the return game, bringing back 12 punts for 72 yards and eight kickoffs for 179 yards for a career total of 3,863 all-purpose yards…As a junior, captured the Biletnikoff Award and was a consensus first-team All-American and All-Pac 12 choice, when he opened up all 13 games and set school and conference single-season receiving records with 128 receptions for 1,730 yards (13.5 avg.), with a school-record 16 touchdowns, also gaining 217 yards with two TDs on 32 carries (6.8 avg.). Added 72 yards on 12 punt returns, as his 2,019 all-purpose yards ranked second on the school's annual charts. Led nation in receiving yards and finished second in TD catches, leading the conference. Tied school single-season record with two 200-yard receiving performances and placed second on season chart with eight 100-yard games….As a sophomore, was a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist and received All-Pac 12 first-team honors from the NFL Draft report and received honorable mention from league coaches. In 13 starts, pulled in 67 passes for 1,151 yards (17.2 avg.) with five touchdowns, carried 19 times for 82 yards (4.3 avg.) to amass 1,233 total yards from scrimmage…Recorded 31 receptions for 391 yards (12.6 avg.) with three TDs and added 41 yards on ten carries as freshman…Also lettered in track…Majored in human development and family sciences.
PERSONAL – Rated as a four-star prospect by Rivals.com coming out of Lincoln (Stockton, Calif.) HS, where he was a two-time Section Offensive Player of the Year, All-Area selection and team Most Valuable Player…As a senior, registered 66 receptions for 1,125 yards and 11 touchdowns, finishing with 1,525 all-purpose yards…As a junior, made 46 catches for 783 yards and ten TDs…Had 29 receptions for 600 yards and seven TDs as sophomore…Closed out prep career earning six letters – three in football, two in track and one in basketball…With an award at 2014 NFL Scouting Combine from Adidas for running the fastest 40-yard dash (4.33), surprised his mother with an automobile as a gift and subsequently purchased her a house following rookie season…For the NFL's "My Cause, My Cleats" promotion, has worn specially designed cleats to support the Fertility Foundation of Texas…As a member of the Cowboys, was also a participant in team events that supported the Salvation Army and Make-A-Wish Foundation…Participated in Benjamin Watson's 2014 "The Big BENefit" event, which provided gift cards to 25 families selected by New Orleans Family Justice center for a shopping spree…Also participated in several community visits throughout the 2015 season, including his visit with patients at The Gayle and Tom Benson Cancer Center…Hosted his Strikes for Kids fundraiser at Fulton Alley Lanes in 2015…Participated in a 2016 Christmas shopping spree for children sponsored by Mark Ingram and Thomas Morstead and their foundations…The past four years has hosted the Brandin Cooks Football Camp and Carnival for over 400 youth ages 7-14 in his hometown of Stockton…In May, collaborated with Ochsner Health to host a youth football camp at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center…He and his wife, Briannon, have three sons…Born September 25, 1993 in Stockton, Calif.
