Brandin Cooks start or sit: Week 1 fantasy football advice

Veteran wide receiver Brandin Cooks will step into the Dallas Cowboys starting lineup for Sunday night’s game against the New York Giants. He is projected to be a WR2 or WR3-type of play and could turn out to be a deciding factor for one of those flex positions.

Fantasy Football analysis: Cowboys WR Brandin Cooks

In 13 games last year with the Houston Texans, Cooks had 93 targets, averaging a little over seven per game. He hit that average in a 24-16 loss to the Giants last year, finishing with seven targets, four catches and 37 yards. His production (57 catches, 699 yards, three touchdowns) came with a shaky quarterback situation in Houston.

Start or sit in Week 1 PPR leagues?

YES with a asterisk.

Cooks is a flex start in a larger (12/14 teams) PPR league. He gets looks and even if he’s working routes underneath, he’s a receiver that Dak Prescott will be able to trust as a secondary target. He could have a statline of six catches and 57 yards making him a solid WR3 option. If he can get in the end zone, that would be great.

In smaller leagues it’s more of a toss up and might depend on your overall depth or your confidence that he can get in the end zone. Cooks only had three touchdowns last year, but the Cowboys offense will provide him with more red zone opportunities.

Start or sit in Week 1 standard leagues?

START in Leagues with 12+ teams.

I think Cooks has a good chance to sneak in the end zone this week and that will give him high value as a WR3 or Flex play in a standard scoring league. There will be more opportunities for Cook in the red zone and with the weapons the Cowboys have, Cooks can be the guy the Giants forget about.

Player(s) you would start ahead of Brandin Cooks

If the open spot in a flex position, I think Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr. is a better start with a comparable ranking to Cooks. Robinson should have a nice afternoon against a weakened Arizona Cardinals team. In a WR slot Cooks has a better matchup and quarterback situation than the receivers with comparable rankings.