March 02, 2017
According to Chris Mortensen of ESPN, the Eagles are in trade talks with the New Orleans Saints for former first-round wide receiver Brandin Cooks:
Saints WR Brandin Cooks is the object of trade talks with the Titans and Eagles identified as two interested suitors, per league sources.
— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) March 2, 2017
Mortensen did note that the Titans are the more likely suitor:
Titans appear to be most likely suitor over Eagles, per one source, but nothing can be official until March 9, if it happens. @ESPNNFL
— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) March 2, 2017
In his final season at Oregon State, Cooks had 128 catches for 1730 yards and 16 TDs. He led the nation in receiving yards and was second both in receptions and touchdowns. That impressive production has carried over into the NFL. Over the last two seasons, Cooks has 162 catches for 2311 yards and 17 TDs, albeit in a pass-happy offense.
Oh, and hey, he's only 23. He's still younger than a handful of players who will be drafted in April.
So why would the Saints want to trade him? Apparently because of reports that Cooks was unhappy with his role in the offense after a game against the Rams last season in which he wasn't targeted. Show me a receiver who isn't pissed that he didn't get any targets, and I'll show you Nelson Agholor a receiver you don't want.
The Saints would be crazy to consider trading Cooks for anything less than the Eagles' first-round pick, in my opinion.
Cooks is a very good ascending young player that the Eagles coveted during the 2014 NFL Draft, but it's wholly unrealistic to think the Saints would just give him away for peanuts, unless he's a colossal jerk. This one is from Mortensen though, so stay tuned.
UPDATE: Chris Mortensen of ESPN published more details of the trade talks for Cooks. Above, in Mortensen's tweets, he said that the Titans were the favorites to land Cooks, but in his story, he notes that conflicting sources say the Eagles are in the lead.
Mortensen does not note what kind of deal the Eagles have on the table, but he did note what the package could include from the Titans:
One scenario has the Titans simply trading their first-round pick (No. 18 overall) for Cooks, who was the Saints' 20th pick in the first round of the 2014 draft. Another scenario, per sources, has the two teams swapping slots in the first round, involving the Titans moving from the No. 5 pick (acquired from the Rams) to the Saints' 11th pick, with another pick or two also in play.
That should give you an idea of what it might cost the Eagles to obtain Cooks, if Mortensen's reporting is accurate.
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