The Rams have been lacking a true speed threat on the outside ever since they traded away Brandin Cooks. Van Jefferson did a decent job last season, but he doesn’t have the 4.33 speed that Cooks does.
Seeing a need for another receiver, the Rams explored reuniting with Cooks at the trade deadline, talking to the Texans about the veteran wideout. According to Tom Pelissero, the Rams and Cowboys were both in discussion with Houston about a deal but no trade was made.
“The Texans fielded trade calls all the way up until Tuesday’s deadline,” Pelissero said. “The Rams, one of Cooks’ former teams, were involved. So were the Cowboys, who made a run all the way into that final hour before the deadline.”
#Texans WR (still) Brandin Cooks’ status is up in the air for tonight’s game against the #Eagles after multiple teams — including the #Rams and #Cowboys — couldn’t pull off a trade before Tuesday’s deadline. @gmfb @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/14ksgLqpAj
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) November 3, 2022
Cooks wasn’t happy that he didn’t get traded, expressing his frustration on social media with a cryptic, yet strongly worded message.
Don’t take a man’s kindness for granted. Covered for the lies for too long those days are done. Crossed the line with playing with my career 🏹
— Brandin Cooks (@brandincooks) November 1, 2022
Cooks has a base salary of $18 million next year, which was likely the sticking point in any deal for the veteran receiver. The Rams would’ve had trouble fitting that under their cap next season, so they were unable to strike a deal with Houston.
It’s also unclear what the asking price for Cooks was and whether the Rams would’ve been willing to give the Texans one of their top picks for him.
Right now, the Rams have a strong receiving corps of Cooper Kupp, Allen Robinson and Van Jefferson, with Ben Skowronek, Brandon Powell and Tutu Atwell working as backups.
