Patriots WR Brandin Cooks has been impressive throughout the offseason, and he has put on a clinic against the Jaguars during two days of joint practices at Gillette Stadium. Remarkably, despite actively scheming to defend the deep post, the Jaguars still were vulnerable to Cooks’ speed.

Cooks is anything but a one-trick pony. His route tree is complete, and he is lethal when he builds off his deeper patterns. By comparison, the Patriots used to shrug off less-defined opposing deep threats like Mike Wallace who only ran one route. That’s easier for a smart defense to contain.

Cooks does it all, and when he decides to turn on the jets, the artist can turn the field into his blank canvas.

When receivers change teams, they usually experience a dip in production unless they see an upgrade at quarterback or an increased role. Cooks is unlikely to see significantly more targets, so given his 2nd- or 3rd-round ADP, he’s not without some risk. Camp reports of Cooks have been glowing, so it appears that he’s quickly earning the trust of Tom Brady. The Patriots aren’t going to force him the ball, so he’s bound to have a few down games, but he should be a key cog in what’s shaping up to be the league’s best offense.

The New England Patriots acquired wide receiver Brandin Cooks from the New Orleans Saints on Friday for a first- and third-round pick in the upcoming draft, multiple sources told ESPN's Dianna Russini.

The Patriots also will receive the Saints' fourth-round pick (No. 118 overall). New England's draft selections headed to the Saints are 32nd and 103rd overall.

The Patriots love receivers who can turn a short catch into a long gainer and with his speed, Cooks fits the bill. The signing is great for Tom Brady, but it's a downgrade for Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan and Malcolm Mitchell. Cooks figures to rank as a WR2 in early projections since the Patriots have several mouths to feed. In New Orleans, it's a small downgrade for Drew Brees while Michael Thomas, Willie Snead and newcomer Ted Ginn will pick up the slack.

Saints Inactives
WR Michael Thomas
C Max Unger
LB Craig Robertson
S Shiloh Keo
RB Marcus Murphy
LB Travis Feeney
C Jack Allen

Related players: Brandin Cooks, Willie Snead, Brandon Coleman

This could mean more looks for Brandin Cooks and Willie Snead. Brandon Coleman could benefit the most in terms of playing time.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks has had his role reduced a bit this season, but he played a sizable amount of snaps one week after expressing frustration.

It would be wrong to assume Cooks' frustration led to the increased role because it was likely matchup related, which was the reason for some of his reduced snaps in other games.

Cooks was on the field for 51 of 61 snaps (84 percent) in Sunday's loss to the Detroit Lions, and he finished with seven catches on nine targets for 73 yards. It was just the second time in the past six games he eclipsed the 80 percent mark.

Related players: Michael Thomas

Playing 77 percent of offensive snaps entering Sunday's game, Cooks obviously plays a significant role in the offense, but that percentage is a decrease from 2015 when he played 83 percent in 2015. Cooks led receivers in snaps last year, but he's second this season behind rookie Michael Thomas, who played 78 percent before Sunday's game and played one more snap than Cooks Sunday. In 2015, Cooks played at least 80 percent of snaps in 11 of 16 games. So far this year, he's played 80 percent in just six of 12 games. Some of the reduction is surely related to the blocking ability of Brandon Coleman and Willie Snead. Cooks ranks second on the Saints in targets (84), receptions (58), receiving yards (809) and receiving touchdowns (six). Thomas leads in all of those categories, the story all said.

The Saints’ offense scored seven touchdowns in Sunday’s win over the Rams, so surely everyone must be feeling good, right?

Wrong.

Saints receiver Brandin Cooks, who did not have a pass thrown his way on Sunday, is apparently getting upset with his role. Mike Triplett of ESPN reports that Cooks has felt a growing frustration with his usage in the offense, thinking that he ought to be the primary option.

Cooks posted a cryptic social media message this week saying, “I guess I have to turn into a businessman,” perhaps implying that if the Saints aren’t going to use him the way he thinks he should be used, he’s going to save his body for when he can hit free agency and go to a team that values his services. Still, it’s not like Cooks is being ignored in the passing game: He’s second on the team in catches (51), yards (736) and touchdowns (six). The good news is maybe the Saint go out of their way to feed Cooks this week.

On a day when the New Orleans Saints offense rolled, one player was noticeably absent in the box score Sunday during the Saints' 49-21 win over the Los Angeles Rams.

Nine different players recorded a target from quarterback Drew Brees, and of those nine players, eight recorded a catch against the Rams.

Brandin Cooks, however, didn't record a target or a catch, and it's not like he wasn't on the field. The third-year pro recorded 45 offensive snaps, which ranked as the second-most among wide receivers behind rookie Michael Thomas' 50.

According to the story, Cooks is apparently just fine and the Saints had plays designed to get him involved. The story went on to say while the Saints could have devised a specific scheme to get Cooks the ball if the coaching staff chose to force the issue, the offense didn't need its top downfield threat against the Rams.

Michael Thomas played 61 of 76 snaps (80 percent) in Sunday's 25-20 win over the Seahawks. It was just the second time this season Thomas led the wide receivers in snaps, also doing so in Week 4 in San Diego, and his 63 yards were a team high, marking the second straight week he led the team in receiving yards.

Related players: Brandin Cooks, Willie Snead

Snead played 74 percent and Cooks 50 percent. It was Thomas who led team in receiving yards as well, catching six passes for 63 yards against the Seahawks.

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.”

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.

Coach Sean Payton said earlier this week that he’d like to see more consistency from his tight end, Coby Fleener. But no one is ringing an alarm or throwing their hands up at this early juncture.

“Listen, I’ve had more time with guys like Brandin Cooks, Willie (Snead), Brandon Coleman, even Michael Thomas at this point because Coby was banged up a little in the offseason,” quarterback Drew Brees said. “The more time that we get together, the more the confidence builds, the more you find everyone’s role in all of this. I’m confident as we progress here that he’s going to be an even bigger part of the offense.”

It hasn't been a good start for Fleener, but the story notes that Ben Watson only had five catches for 31 yards at this point last season (on nine targets) and he finished with 74 catches for 825 yards. If possible, Fleener should be benched until he starts to produce, but it's too early to send him packing.

Michael Thomas has No. 1 receiver potential.

Make no mistake: Brandin Cooks is still the best wide receiver on the Saints. But their second-round pick has been the summer darling thus far, consistently making impressive plays at The Greenbrier and adding a couple more in the preseason opener against the Patriots. Michael Thomas' size, ball skills and run-after-catch instincts should help him contribute significantly as a rookie, and he should continue to grow.

Thomas is expected to replace Marques Colston's production in the lineup, but he could push Willie Snead (who has also had a good camp) if he continues to shine.