Report: Texans trade second round pick for Brandin Cooks, 2022 fourth round pick

The Houston Texans dealt away wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins last month, and they appear to have found a replacement option. Well, a replacement in Bill O’Brien’s eyes.

The Texans are trading their second round pick (No. 56 overall) to the Los Angeles Rams for wide receiver Brandin Cooks and a 2022 fourth round pick, according to Texans beat writer John McClain. For comparison’s sake, the Texans traded Hopkins and a 2020 fourth round pick to the Arizona Cardinals for running back David Johnson, a 2020 second round pick, and a 2021 fourth round pick.

Cooks missed two games in what was a down 2019 for him. After four straight 1,000-yard, 5+ touchdown seasons, Cooks caught 42 passes for 583 yards and two touchdowns. The Rams offense took a decided step back, and Cooks struggled to get going.

He is a downgrade from Hopkins, but if you own Cooks in a dynasty or keeper league, his value is upgraded. He will compete with Will Fuller for the primary targets, but given Fuller’s issues staying healthy, Cooks looks like he’ll be the No. 1 receiver in Houston. He gets an upgrade at the quarterback position, moving from Jared Goff to DeShaun Watson, so that is also worth a boost to his fantasy value. If he can stay healthy, his ceiling is still low-end WR1. For draft purposes, optimistically I’d say he’s a WR2.