Should the Eagles Trade for Brandin Cooks?
The Philadelphia Eagles have put their focus on making sure they sure up their secondary as it was one of their weaknesses heading into the offseason.
Their response to that was trading for Darius Slay and signing Nickell Robey-Coleman. The team also re-signed Jalen Mills to move him to safety to take over for the departing Malcolm Jenkins.
With the secondary looking better, fans are now asking the question: What about the receiver position?
The team was lacking a deep threat for quarterback Carson Wentz after losing DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffery for most of the season to injuries. Wentz had to throw it to Greg Ward Jr. and Robert Davis by the end of the season. Fans were hoping that the team would go after players like Robby Anderson or even DeAndre Hopkins. It appeared the Eagles were in conversations with the Houston Texans about trading for Hopkins, but the team felt it was too much of a price to pay for him so they didn’t go for the deal. That move brought on criticism from fans since the Arizona Cardinals didn’t have to give up a first-round pick for him.
The lack of movement in terms of signing or trading for a wide receiver has been a concern for many fans. They have lost out on some of the best receivers in the market. There has been one receiver in the league that has been brought up as a possibility for the Eagles to trade for.
Brandin Cooks.
Sportswriter Peter King has suggested that the Eagles would be one of the top landing spots for Cooks. He stated in his blog with Football Morning in America that, “My best landing spots for Cooks, if the Rams would entertain a deal, would be Philadelphia, Green Bay, Oakland or Washington. Of course, the strength of the receiver group in this draft will affect any of those teams’ willingness to pursue Cooks.”
It’s a move that could make a lot of sense for the Eagles. They would most likely be able to trade him for low draft picks and not have to give up a first-round pick.
This, in part, is due to Cooks’ off-year as he recorded 583 yards and two touchdowns last season.
It would be expected that Cooks is probably not too happy about the lack of production and targets. Most likely, the Eagles could trade him for about a second and fifth-round picks or a combo of third and fifth-round picks as well.
This move would also help Wentz out with giving him a younger, more established receiver to throw it to for the 2020 season. Jackson would still bring that deep threat ability, but Cooks gives them insurance for if Jackson would get hurt again. Adding with the reliable hands of Ward Jr. and still having tight ends Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert make the passing attack improved from 2019.
Another element to a move like this could be the decision on what to do with Jeffery in the offseason. There has been speculation that the team would cut him and move on from the veteran receiver. Adding Cooks would give them more of a reason to make the move to cut Jeffery. It could also mean that the team might keep Jeffery and make the receiving core that much better as long as everyone stays healthy.
Trading for Cooks has to be something general manager Howie Roseman has to be considering. He mentioned that the team was going to make bold moves to improve the roster. Roseman took a good first step with all the moves made in the secondary which has fans excited.
The next and most important step is to go after a wide receiver. Most likely, the team will draft a receiver in the NFL Draft since the receiver class is so deep.
The team has to think about adding an established receiver to help Wentz out and Cooks could be that guy.
Featured Image: Rob Leiter/Getty Images
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