8 Wide recievers the Chicago Bears could target in trade negotiations
Could Brandin Cooks find himself on yet another new team in 2023?
It would be fitting for Brandin Cooks to find himself on yet another team before his career is over. Cooks has played for four teams already — the Saints, Patriots, Rams and Texans. He is now making comments about wanting to be traded out of Houston and apparently wanted it to happen prior to the 2022 trade deadline. He said he wants nothing to do with a rebuild in Houston. The fact that Houston wasn’t able to trade him tells me that Ryan Poles probably is not interested since he sent a second-round pick to the Steelers for Chase Claypool instead.
Maybe now that Poles has seen how Claypool played in 2022, he might have a different thought about Cooks. Brandin Cooks is highly underrated. Despite playing in multiple offenses under multiple coaches, he has gained over 1,000 yards in six of his nine seasons. He has yet to break into the double-digit touchdown category, but he is a legit baller and would make Justin Fields’ life easier.
Unfortunately, Cooks’ salary could be a problem for the Texans in trade negotiations. Houston would take a $34 million dollar dead cap hit should they waive or trade him. Keeping him would only cost them $26 million. Even if both sides wanted to willingly move on, the contract might not allow it.
Houston has plenty of salary cap space to absorb the loss. They currently sit with $37 million in cap space, but moving Cooks would drop that to less than $30 million. Will the Texans do it to move up to first overall though? The second-overall pick plus Cooks for the top pick, maybe? I am not sure Cooks’ would want to be a part of a Chicago Bears rebuild either, but I’d put the Bears in a better position than the Texans.