Saints WR Brandin Cooks liked the way he was used Week 6

Oct 18, 2016

To be fair, Saints WR Brandin Cooks often was shadowed by two of the NFL's top young cornerbacks -- the Atlanta Falcons’ Desmond Trufant and the San Diego Chargers’ Jason Verrett -- in those two quiet games before breaking out last week. Cooks also received extra attention from deep safeties.

But because of Cooks’ blazing speed (a 4.33-second 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine), there is probably a temptation for the Saints to use the 5-foot-10, 189-pounder on deep routes most of the time, even if he is just clearing out No. 1 cornerbacks and safeties.

Cooks, a first-round draft pick in 2014, repeated Monday what he has stressed many times -- that he doesn’t want to get pigeonholed as “a guy that’s just considered a deep-ball threat and that’s it.”

Fantasy Impact:

Cooks said Monday that he really liked the Saints’ game plan in Sunday’s 41-38 victory over the Carolina Panthers, in which he caught seven passes for a career-high 173 yards and an 87-yard touchdown. In those two prior games, he had just five catches for 44 yards.

Apr 17

Chargers to sign RB J.K. Dobbins on one-year deal

Tom Pelissero

Apr 17 · 7:45 PM EDT

Former Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins is planning to sign with the #Chargers on a one-year deal. Electric when healthy, Dobbins — who averages 5.8 yards per carry in his career — reunites with OC Greg Roman and can hit the market again in March.

Related Players: Gus Edwards

Fantasy Impact:

Dobbins has had poor injury luck in his career, but has only managed 234 total rushes since being drafted in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. This is a low-risk, high-reward move by the Chargers and might give them a runway to wait a little longer in the '24 Draft before they address the position.

Apr 16

Cowboys sign RB Royce Freeman

Todd Archer

Apr 16 · 8:15 PM EDT

The Cowboys have signed running back Royce Freeman to a one-year deal. Freeman had 319 yards on 77 carries with 2 touchdowns last year for the Los Angeles Rams. He was 3rd round pick of Denver in '18.

Related Players: Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn

Fantasy Impact:

Freeman hasn't rushed for 500 yards since 2018, his rookie season. This shouldn't have any impact on the team drafting at the position and/or bringing back Ezekiel Elliott.

Apr 15

Eagles sign WR DeVonta Smith to three-year extension

Ian Rapoport

Apr 15 · 10:45 AM EDT

The Eagles have paid another big-time, rising player. This time, WR DeVonta Smith gets a 3-year, $75M contract extension that includes $51M guaranteed.

Related Players: A.J. Brown, DeVante Parker, Parris Campbell

Fantasy Impact:

Great news for Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offense as a whole. Smith will continue his 1b role in which he finished the 2023 season as fantasy's WR22.