Sean McVay debunks ‘unfair narrative’ about Brandin Cooks

Sean McVay and Les Snead explain why the Rams traded Brandin Cooks.

Brandin Cooks is one of just nine players in the NFL with four seasons of at least 1,000 yards receiving since 2015. Yet, he’s been traded three times in that span and will play for his fourth team next season. For comparison, no other player with at least one 1,000-yard season since 2015 has played for more than two teams.

So what gives?

That’s the question many fans are asking about Cooks, with some wondering if there’s a lesser-known reason for Cooks being traded so frequently. Is he a bad teammate? Does he not work hard enough? Was there a rift with his coaches?

Sean McVay put those false narratives to rest Wednesday, saying Cooks is one of the best players he’s ever worked with.

“He’s a great player. I think the one thing I want to address immediately is I think there’s been an unfair narrative of, ‘all right, he’s been traded now for the third time, maybe this guy isn’t a great teammate’ and that really couldn’t be further from the truth. This is one of my all-time favorite players I’ve ever worked with,” he said.

McVay talked highly of Cooks, and has ever since he arrived in Los Angeles two years ago. He confirmed recently that teams were calling about him as a possible trade chip, but said the Rams valued him just like other teams do.

It begs the question of why the Rams traded Cooks, especially considering they stood to lose $5 million in cap space compared to how much he would’ve cost to keep on the roster.

“It’s the result of a lot of tough decisions that we really had to make organizationally as a whole this offseason, losing a lot of great players that have been instrumental in our success, and Brandin is one of those guys as well,” McVay said. “But it’s also a reflection of the confidence that we do have in some other players on our roster.”

General manager Les Snead was also on NFL Network, and while he didn’t comment on Cooks as a person, he did shed some light on what led to the trade. He said teams believed at the start of the offseason that the Rams might cut Cooks due to his inflated salary.

The front office never planned to do that, and when other teams realized that, they began to make trade offers. A second-round pick was too good for the Rams to pass up, given the depth they have at wide receiver.

“First and foremost, I think teams came into this offseason thinking we might cut Brandin Cooks based on salary. When that timeline passed and teams realized we weren’t going to cut him and that we actually liked Brandin, some teams that were needy started knocking on our door a little bit more,” Snead said. “We’re just fortunate we have depth there and when we were offered the second-round pick, we felt like maybe that second-round pick would help us establish depth or even starters at other positions than just having a very powerful four-man wide receiver rotation.”

The Rams don’t necessarily need to draft a receiver at No. 57 overall, which is the pick they got in return for Cooks. They already have Josh Reynolds on the roster and feel confident in him being able to step up as a starter, just as he did in 2018 when Cooper Kupp missed half the season.

Trading Cooks was a difficult decision to make, but ultimately one the team felt comfortable with because of the value of a second-round pick and their depth at wide receiver.

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