Brandin Cooks’ tenure with the Rams certainly didn’t end on a high note, but his first season in L.A. in 2018 was certainly a successful one. It was the same year that Robert Woods really broke out as a top receiver, too, eclipsing the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career.
Together, Cooks and Woods put together one of the best seasons of the last decade for a wide receiver duo. That’s according to Pro Football Focus’ WAR (wins above replacement) metric, which measures a player’s value over an average player at the same position.
PFF ranked Cooks and Woods’ 2018 season among the three best of the decade, right there with Antonio Brown and Markus Wheaton in 2015, and Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb in 2014.
Best Wide Receiver duos of the decade according to PFF WAR
➤ 2014 Packers (Jordy Nelson & Randall Cobb)
➤ 2015 Steelers (Antonio Brown & Markus Wheaton)
➤ 2018 Rams (Brandin Cooks & Robert Woods) pic.twitter.com/HEvfBJbu1Y— PFF (@PFF) July 13, 2020
That year, Cooks caught 80 passes for 1,204 yards and five touchdowns, averaging 15.1 yards per catch. Woods caught 86 passes for 1,219 yards and six touchdowns, also adding 157 yards rushing and one touchdown.
PFF doesn’t reveal which of the three duos had the highest WAR of the decade, but the fact that Woods and Cooks were even in the conversation is surprising. Sure, they were as reliable and consistent as any tandem in the league, but calling them one of the best duos of the last 10 years seems like a stretch.