Patriots trade WR Cooks to Rams for 1st-round pick
New England gets 23rd overall draft choice from L.A.
Tom Brady will be without one of his top receivers from last season after the Patriots traded deep threat Brandin Cooks to the Rams on Tuesday for Los Angeles’ first-round draft pick, 23rd overall.
In the deal, New England also sends a fourth-round choice to the Rams, who give the Patriots a sixth-rounder.
Cooks, 24, was New Orleans’ first-round selection in 2014 and played three seasons for the Saints. He was acquired 13 months ago by New England for a firstrounder and other picks, and made 65 receptions for 1,082 yards and seven touchdowns in his lone season with the Patriots.
Cooks is entering the fifth year of his rookie contract and could become a free agent after the 2018 season.
Cooks’ skill set was something the Rams were seeking this offseason following Sammy Watkins’ departure to Kansas City. Cooks joins another speed-based offense that can put his ability to create in space to use.
The trade is somewhat of a surprise move for New England considering the chemistry he quickly developed with Brady. This trade also comes on the heels of one of Brady’s favorite targets in Danny Amendola being signed by the Dolphins in free agency.
But with three 1,000-yard seasons, Cooks is likely to be a coveted player next offseason and the Patriots may not have been willing to pay a high price to keep him.
With the draft picks New England picked up in Tuesday’s deal, it now holds four picks in the first two rounds later this month and four more picks in Rounds 3-7.
The Patriots are also expecting wide receivers Julian Edelman and Malcolm Mitchell to return from knee injuries that ended their 2017 seasons.
Raiders: Signed free agent wide receiver and special teams player Dwayne Harris, who played only five games for the Giants last season before going on the reserve/injured list with a bad foot. He returned nine kickoffs for 188 yards. The 30year-old spent his first four seasons with the Cowboys, then played the past three seasons with New York.
Cardinals: Signed free agent wide receiver Brice Butler to a two-year contract. Butler, entering his sixth NFL season, played the last three seasons with the Cowboys and totaled 43 catches for 794 yards and six TDs. He was selected by Oakland in the seventh round out of San Diego State in the 2013 draft and played his first two seasons with the Raiders.
Titans: Quinton Spain signed his restricted freeagent tender, a move that enables the Titans to keep their starting left guard. Spain has started 33 games over the last three seasons since joining the Titans as an undrafted free agent from West Virginia in 2015.
Tennessee also has signed former Texans guard Xavier Su’a-Filo and former Buccaneers offensive lineman Kevin Pamphile.
Jets: Signed tight end Bucky Hodges, who was a sixthround pick of Minnesota last year out of Virginia Tech, where he had 133 catches for 1,747 yards and 20 touchdowns in three seasons. He was waived-injured after suffering a concussion in the Vikings’ preseason finale. Hodges was signed to Carolina’s practice squad and released in October.
Redskins: Nose tackle Phil Taylor Sr. re-signed with Washington after missing the past three NFL seasons with injuries. He had 59 tackles and four sacks as a rookie with Cleveland in 2011, but he has played only 28 games since.
Eagles: Agreed on a oneyear contract with linebacker Paul Worrilow. The five-year veteran spent the past season with Detroit after playing his first four seasons in Atlanta. Worrilow started 44 games for the Falcons and eight for the Lions.