Team-by-Team Draft Recap: New Orleans Saints

Dan Meylor

cooks

Over the last eight seasons (since Sean Payton and Drew Brees arrived in The Big Easy), the Saints have consistently been one of the top offenses for fantasy owners to find talent. During the draft they only added one non-IDP fantasy relevant player, but that’s all they had to do for dynasty owners.

Brandin Cooks, WR (Round One, #20 overall)

If you’re anything like me, you moved to the edge of your seat when the Saints traded up with the Arizona Cardinals to the 20th spot in round one of the 2014 NFL Draft. I sat patiently as I waited to see if general manager Mickey Loomis was making the move to bolster an offensive line that was average at best in 2013; or if he would add another weapon to an already potent offense. When it turned out to be the latter, dynasty owners everywhere smiled.

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Brandin Cooks fits perfectly in New Orleans. After all, the Saints have a need for a slot receiver now that Lance Moore signed in Pittsburgh and even more of a need for a short to intermediate pass catcher who Payton can design plays for since Darren Sproles was traded to Philly.

Cooks developed into one of the premier playmakers in college football while at Oregon State. As a sophomore in 2012, he caught 67 passes for 1,151 yards and five touchdowns while playing alongside current Steelers receiver Markus Wheaton. When Wheaton left for the draft, it didn’t affect Cooks a bit. He hauled in 128 passes for 1,730 yards (both Pac-12 single season records) and 16 scores as a junior and added two more touchdowns on the ground in his final year on campus in route to winning the 2013 Biletnikoff Award which is given to the nation’s best receiver.

With the Beavers, Cooks did a majority of his damage as an underneath receiver. He has extremely quick feet and excellent balance which make him a very good route runner. He excels on quick screens, crossing routes and slant patterns which are much of what he’ll be asked to do in New Orleans.

Oregon State’s coaching staff focused on trying to get Cooks the ball quickly in an attempt to get him in space. When they were successful (which was often), Cooks was exceptional in the open field. Due to his quickness, agility and balance, he was a nightmare for opposing defenses to bring down. He rarely broke any tackles, but displayed the special ability to regularly make defenders miss.

Like all college prospects, Cooks did display some weaknesses to his game while with the Beavers. Due to his size (5’10, 189 pounds), he struggles from time to time in bump-and-run coverage, often getting re-routed. He also has the annoying habit of occasionally catching the ball with his body, which won’t go over well at the next level. Nonetheless, he entered the NFL combine in February as a lock to be selected in the first two rounds of both the NFL Draft and most dynasty rookie drafts.

At the Combine, Cooks impacted his draft stock dramatically by posting the second highest 40-yard dash time (4.33) and making the on-field drills look like a breeze.

Once he displayed his lightning fast wheels and smooth hands in Indianapolis, Cooks skyrocketed up NFL Draft boards and dynasty mocks. When Cooks landed in New Orleans on draft day, his fantasy stock rose even higher.

Cooks will be expected to make an immediate impact for both the Saints and fantasy owners. Most expect him to instantly become the primary slot receiver for the Saints, but recent reports out of New Orleans suggest the Saints’ coaching staff expects Cooks to play both in the slot and outside the numbers which is extremely good news for dynasty owners who are focusing on Cooks in rookie drafts. As we all know, Jimmy Graham is often lined up in the slot, especially when the team is in the red-zone. If Cooks can show he has the chops to play outside the numbers and stay on the field when the team is in scoring territory, his fantasy value will spike even higher.

The Saints offense with once again have plenty of mouths to feed in 2014, with Graham being the most obvious. Outside of him, Marques Colston will once again enter training camp as the number one receiver on the depth chart. Now that Cooks is in town, Kenny Stills’ dynasty value will take a hit as he’ll most likely be asked to once again play the role of the decoy that stretches the defense. He’ll no doubt have a few big games when he and Brees connect downfield on big plays but his upside is severely limited at least for the short term. The depth chart also features Joe Morgan, Robert Meachem, Nick Toon and free agent signee Brandon Coleman among others, none of which have the skills to challenge Cooks for playing time.

Overall, Cooks was drafted into an optimal landing spot. He’ll play half his games on the sprinter’s track that is the Superdome with one of the top quarterbacks in the game and possibly the best coach currently in the NFL when it comes to creating plays for a specific player’s skill set. He has all the makings of a dynamic slot receiver including lightning fast quickness, blazing speed and incredible balance and body control. He’s poised to fill the void left by Moore and Sproles and could very well be the perfect blend of the two former Saints.

From a dynasty owner’s perspective, the sky is the limit for Cooks. Not only does he have the skills to be a top-15 fantasy wide out in PPR leagues, but he could reach that potential relatively quickly considering the prime landing spot he was drafted in to.

Before the hype train gets too out of control though, it’s imperative for dynasty owners in standard leagues to know Cooks doesn’t have near the appeal in their leagues. He has great potential to rack up receiving yards due to his impressive skills after the catch, but his slight stature and the fact Graham will play the slot in the red zone absolutely affect his upside for catching touchdowns.

While expectations should be dramatically lowered in standard leagues, Cooks has the potential to deliver WR3 numbers as early as this season with the upside to one day become a WR1 in PPR leagues.   At this point, he’s absolutely in the discussion to be the third player drafted in rookie drafts (PPR) and should be considered a steal outside of the top-five.

Follow me on Twitter: @dmeylor22

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dan meylor