Tag: Brandin Cooks

Why Brandin Cooks’ return is huge for Rams with Robert Woods still away

The Rams will have Brandin Cooks back, which is huge for the offense with Robert Woods still away.

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The Los Angeles Rams offense looked very different on Sunday night against the Bears than it did in Week 1. There were two new starters at wide receiver and three new faces on the offensive line, as well as Johnny Mundt replacing Gerald Everett as one of the two starting tight ends.

They had to thrust Josh Reynolds and Mike Thomas into larger roles with Brandin Cooks still recovering from a concussion and Robert Woods tending to a family matter. Being without both players was a big hit to the offense, given the importance of both players’ roles.

It’s unclear when Woods will return to the team and there’s a chance he could miss Monday’s game, but Sean McVay shared some good news on Cooks’ recovery Wednesday. He confirmed the wideout will be back on the field Monday night against the Ravens after missing two games.

“Brandin Cooks is back, he’s excited to be able to play,” McVay said. “He’s felt good for a couple weeks, so when he’s feeling good and we’ve gotten the thumbs up from everybody else, that makes us all feel good. He’s going to play and we’re excited about that.”

This is huge news for the Rams, to say the least.

Cooks has been the least impactful of the Rams’ top three wide receivers this season, but that doesn’t make him unimportant. He simply hasn’t gotten as many opportunities as Woods and Cooper Kupp.

His return to the field changes things dramatically for the Rams offense. With Cooks and Woods both out in Week 11, the Rams went with a completely different approach offensively. They utilized two-tight end sets on 34 plays, which is the highest total of the season. They ran the ball 34 times and Jared Goff only attempted 18 passes, the fewest in his career.

The Rams set out to run the ball straight at the Bears, and it worked to the tune of a 17-7 win. But as we’ve seen all season, McVay prefers to throw the ball over run it. It’s just that putting the ball in the air 40 times with Reynolds and Thomas as two of the top three receivers wasn’t a recipe for success.

We all know how reliant McVay is on 11 personnel, having three receivers on the field more than 90% of the time. The Rams can get back to that on Monday night against the Ravens with Cooks, Kupp and Reynolds, leaving Thomas and his unreliable hands in the No. 4 spot.

Cooks’ speed will also be very valuable. He can stretch a defense like few receivers can, and against the Ravens’ cornerbacks, that’s critical. While Marlon Humphrey has good speed, Marcus Peters and Brandon Carr are somewhat lacking in that area.

If the Rams can get Cooks matched up on Peters or Carr, they can take advantage against single-high safety looks when it’s essentially one-on-one outside. Thomas and Reynolds simply don’t possess that same level of speed as Cooks.

The biggest benefit of Cooks’ return is having three receivers Goff is comfortable with. The Rams clearly shied away from using too many three-receiver sets against the Bears because of his and Woods’ absences, but that should change on Monday night.

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Fantasy football: 5 sleepers to start, 5 starters to bench in Week 12

Five sleepers to start and five starters to bench in fantasy football Week 12.

It’s crunch time in fantasy football.

A little scouting and you can avoid a crucial late-season loss or do just enough to cross the finish line with a win this week. We’ve got you covered with a quick scouting report to help you out.

Here are five sleepers to start and five starters you’ve got to sit in fantasy football Week 12:

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Starts

QB Matt Ryan

After two decent games on the road from him the past two weeks, Matt Ryan and the Falcons return home. There he’s going to meet the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There’s a few reasons to go with Ryan in Week 12. First, his team is on an unforeseen two-game winning streak. That could continue because of him. The Falcons’ backfield is banged up, but the Bucs also sport the second-best run defense in the NFL. In addition, they have the second-worst pass defense. Do the math.

RB Phillip Lindsay

Phillip Lindsay has been steady as she goes over the past few weeks. He’s had outings of 59, 92, and 67 yards in his past three games, respectively, with a touchdown coming in the 92-yard outing. But having said that, the Bills defense is a formidable one, but not against the run. The third-best defense overall in Buffalo is actually 18th against the run and only slowed down their opponent last week because the Dolphins are the Dolphins.

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Sean McVay shares injury updates on Brandin Cooks, Rob Havenstein

Sean McVay said Cooks is likely to return on Monday night, while Havenstein is doubtful.

The Rams were without several key players on Sunday night against the Bears, most notably Brandin Cooks, Robert Woods and Rob Havenstein. Cooks has missed two games with a concussion, while Havenstein is dealing with a knee injury that he suffered against the Steelers.

The Rams were still able to beat the Bears 17-7, holding their offense in check behind a great defensive effort. On Monday, McVay shared updates on Cooks and Havenstein, but said there’s nothing new on Woods, who is still “handling that personal matter.”

“We’ll probably have a little bit more of an update on that later on in the week,” McVay said.

Regarding Cooks, the Rams expect to have him back on Monday night against the Ravens as he’s made good progress in the concussion protocol.

“We do [expect him to play]. He’s been in great spirits, he’s been in good shape. The anticipation is that he will be able to play this week,” McVay said.

Havenstein’s outlook isn’t as positive, though. It was originally considered a multi-week injury, and it doesn’t sound like he’ll be on the field against the Ravens. McVay wouldn’t rule him out just yet, though, which does leave the door slightly open for him to play.

“I would say he’s probably going to be doubtful for this week,” the coach said. “He is making good progress. To have a finite answer on exactly when he’ll play a week from today is difficult. I think the anticipation – just originally with that injury – was that it’s probably going to be a couple weeks. That’s why he’ll most likely be doubtful, but you don’t want to rule him out quite yet.”

Bobby Evans did a great job in Havenstein’s place, all but neutralizing Khalil Mack and any other pass rushers that lined up across from him. He got a lot of help from the tight ends chipping at the line, but it was a solid performance by the rookie.

In other injury news, Michael Brockers went down briefly with an elbow injury, but he was able to return to the game. McVay didn’t express any concern on that front.

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Brandin Cooks is selling his L.A. home for $5.8M: Nothing or something?

Brandin Cooks has listed his home for $5.8 million. Does it mean anything?

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Brandin Cooks is listing his recently purchased Hidden Hills house on the market, according to an article from the Los Angeles Times.

Cooks’ 2.3-acre estate rests at the top of a cul-de-sac. He bought the modern style home a few months after being traded from the Patriots to the Rams, but the official listing on RedFin shows he is selling the home for $5.8 million.

PHOTOS: Brandin Cooks lists home for $5.8 million

But as the sixth-year wideout begins listening to offers for his house, it isn’t far-fetched to assume that the Rams are preparing to listen to offers for Brandin Cooks himself.

According to Spotrac, the Rams will enter the 2020 season with 41 players under contract and roughly $26 million in cap space. Cooks’ salary alone amounts to 8.1 percent of the team’s salary cap, with $21.8 million in dead cap.

Looking ahead to next season, Cooks could be a cap casualty for a team that is in win-now mode with very little draft capital and is heavily-invested in franchise quarterback Jared Goff, who has struggled behind a porous offensive line decimated by injuries.

Les Snead has become increasingly aggressive during his tenure as general manager of the Rams since the team moved to Los Angeles. With Cooks, the Rams have a dependable deep threat who has finished above 1,000 yards receiving with 16 starts in four of his six seasons in the league, with the only other two seasons being this year and a rookie season cut short by a fractured thumb.

But an unfortunate slew of recent head injuries has kept Cooks from maximizing his full potential and could also diminish his trade value. The former Oregon State All-American suffered his fourth concussion in less than two years in the Rams’ 24-10 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in London and is officially listed as out for the team’s Sunday night tilt against the Bears.

And as Cooks’ contract stipulates, he has $50 million guaranteed for injury. It also wouldn’t be far-fetched to think that he could walk away from the game with well-deserved wealth for the sake of his own health.

This is not to speculate that Cooks has considered retirement, but there’s a growing trend across the NFL where star players retire during the prime of their careers. Andrew Luck is the most recent example, following the footsteps of perennial All-Pro players like Patrick Willis, Calvin Johnson, and Rob Gronkowski.

But the trade deadline has since passed, and Cooks is seeking to get back on the field as soon as possible. Rams head coach Sean McVay is optimistic that his deep threat wideout will return for the team’s Monday night date with Lamar Jackson and the Ravens in Week 12.

“He’s out there. He’s got great energy like he always does. He’s moving around,” McVay said. “I think it’s one of those things sitting down with Brandin, really getting a chance to talk to our doctors and then making that decision that we feel like is right. I think he’s feeling good and I think he’s excited about the opportunity to come back and play.”

Cooks’ decision to sell his Los Angeles home doesn’t necessarily mean his days as a Ram are numbered. One only needs to look at NBA superstar Kawhi Leonard, who in June reportedly bought property in Toronto ahead of his decision to spurn the Toronto Raptors for the Los Angeles Clippers in early July.

But all things considered, Cooks’ status with the team is certainly something worth monitoring as the Rams continue to play the game of salary cap gymnastics that they started, which won’t end anytime soon.

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Rams rule out WR Brandin Cooks, RT Rob Havenstein vs. Bears

The Rams have already ruled out two offensive starters for a Week 11 game against the Bears in WR Brandin Cooks and RT Rob Havenstein.

The Los Angeles Rams are banged up heading into a pivotal Week 11 matchup against the Chicago Bears.

After losing center Brian Allen for the season with an MCL injury, the Rams will also be without receiver Brandin Cooks (concussion) and right tackle Rob Havenstein (meniscus) come Sunday’s primetime game against the Bears.

The Rams’ offensive line is a mess due to an influx of injuries, which doesn’t bode well for quarterback Jared Goff, who will face a Bears defense that mauled him last season.

Cooks’ absence will heighten the pressure on receiver Cooper Kupp, who failed to catch a pass for the first time in his NFL career last Sunday in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers with Cooks out.

The Bears defense might be catching the Rams offense at the right time. Although the Bears offense will have to face a dominant Rams defense led by All-Pro Aaron Donald.

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Rob Havenstein, Brandin Cooks ruled out for Week 11

Sean McVay said both players will be out this week against the Bears.

The injury bug has bitten the Los Angeles Rams hard the last few weeks and it’s really taking a toll on the offense. Not only is center Brian Allen out for the year with an MCL injury, but Rob Havenstein has a knee injury of his own.

Sean McVay announced Monday that Havenstein and Brandin Cooks have both already been ruled out for Week 11 against the Chicago Bears.

Havenstein could be out multiple weeks with the meniscus injury, and Cooks is still recovering from his second concussion of the season.

David Edwards slid over to right tackle after Havenstein went down. That pushed Coleman Shelton into the lineup with the starters.

Austin Blythe replaced Allen at center with Austin Corbett filling in at left guard. Put simply, the offensive line is a mess right now.

It doesn’t help that the Rams will face the Bears’ dominant defensive front on Sunday night, led by Khalil Mack on the outside.