Brandin Cooks Traded to Houston Texans

[Memento]

Johnson is a Woods or Kupp replacement (I love Johnson, but he's not a Cooks replacement). He doesn't have vertical speed. Aiyuk also isn't a burner, needs development with his route running, and doesn't dominate in the air. I don't think he's a bad prospect, but he's not the right fit. Claypool, while super athletic for his size, is more of a TE mismatch than a WR mismatch imo. He's a mechanical mover and doesn't separate easily from DBs.

True, but I've noticed that Aiyuk was being used as a deep threat for ASU, especially in his junior year with N'Keal Harry being the big redzone target. I think he could fit into the role of Cooks, given enough seasoning behind Kupp, Woods, and Reynolds. Claypool proved that he can be an outside threat with great speed., especially against Georgia (although Kmet really stole the show in that game). He may not be able to easily separate, but I see him as, say, a Golladay type, a guy who can stretch the field, pluck the ball out of midair on any type of coverage.

I'd gladly take either Aiyuk or Claypool.

 

[TexasRam]

I love McVay, but he was the goat of that game. He got arrogant and thought he could beat Belichick running his scheme the same way he did all year. So many of us were saying that McVay needed to come up with a completely novel approach to that game because Belichick was going to use the two weeks he had to throw something at McVay he hadn't seen before that was geared to stop his scheme.

That all said, Cooks could have been the hero. He had two passes hit him in the hands that would have been TDs. Both were difficult catches. But both were catchable. When we're paying you nearly $17 million per year, you gotta be a guy who can step up and make those plays. Still, I don't blame him for the loss. I just note he could have been the reason for the win.

I agree on Mcvay. Let’s face it, Bill came up with a defense that featured 6 guys on the line. It worked so well that defenses utilized it all last
Year until Mcvay finally adjusted late in the year.

Regarding Cooks, I grew up with a saying, “if it hits you in your hands you need to catch it”. There are many Receivers that would have caught both TD’s that Cooks dropped, I’ve seen it a million times.

Cooks has his strengths, but he is weak at coming down with the ball in traffic.

A lot of the possession WR’s adjust their body or shoulder or arms at the last second to deflect a defenders arm.
Some receivers use other techniques like adjusting their arms to an unexpected position and quickly move their arms away after the catch.

The problem with Cooks is his form while catching is very exact and predictable. He telegraphs way to early the position of his arms while waiting to catch a ball. The Patriots defenders are too well coached to not know to find an arm and pull it to dislodge the ball.

I don’t even blame Cooks really. He has his strengths. He is an excellent route runner and is super fast and without traffic has great hands.

We needed a Possession WR in that Super Bowl because the Patriots DB’s made ALL of our WR’s drop passes on contact.

 

[Merlin]

I didn't just throw names out there. I made a list of all the guys expected to go from the late first to early third, watched them, and narrowed the list to the guys I liked. I didn't consider any guys who couldn't make plays down the field or run the routes asked of the player in Cooks's role (mainly vertical and speed cuts). Taking them one by one:

1. Tee Higgins - Long strider with sneaky vertical speed and contested catch dominance. Needs to improve his releases against press coverage. If he lasts to our first second round pick, we should sprint to the podium. He's a first round talent. I've seen comparisons to A.J. Green. They are justifiable.

2. Denzel Mims - Very physical with great athleticism and a massive catch radius. Has the speed to separate vertically, the quickness and physicality to uncover underneath, and the catch radius to be a red-zone threat. He also needs to improve his releases against press coverage. Unlikely to make our pick. Ultimate upside is Michael Thomas esque. DeVante Parker might be a more realistic expectation.

3. K.J. Hamler - Explosive speed reminiscent of DeSean Jackson. You can't teach his acceleration, explosive cuts, or top-end speed. Needs to polish up his routes, lacks size and play strength, and has average hands. Major vertical threat, can do damage on returns and jet sweeps/reverses, and could play inside or outside. Not going to make many contested catches. Upside seems to be DeSean Jackson, but may end up more like Ted Ginn Jr. with the Saints.

4. Laviska Shenault - Plays the game like Anquan Boldin and Juju. Built like a power HB, runs like a power HB, and uses his size and strength to bully CBs in his routes. Strong hands. Huge YAC threat. Needs to polish his route running (tips route depth based on tempo) and show better effort as a blocker. Has durability questions due to his physicality. Explosive acceleration allows him to separate, but his top-end speed isn't special. Will separate vertically because of his acceleration but fast defenders can recover to contest catches because he lacks the extra gear. Boom/bust prospect with MASSIVE upside.

On the guys I eliminated, Michael Pittman is a contested catch monster and very physical, but I think he's too tightly wound to run our route tree effectively. He's more of a linear athlete. Brandon Aiyuk is talented, but he makes more sense as a Woods replacement and needs a lot of development. Jalen Reagor is lethal with the ball in his hands, but he's small and not fast enough to play the role we want. Chase Claypool is super talented but too raw. I think he makes more sense as a guy who plays as sort of a TE/big slot hybrid. Devin Duvernay seems like a bad fit for our scheme, and his skill-set is kind of one of mismatched parts.

Thing that bothers me with Higgins is his routes. Dude rounds things off too much for my taste, but will admit the thought of adding a 6'4" legit X type receiver to this offense would be exciting. He'd be able to stretch it out for us just fine with the deep routes right out the gate.

Hamler we could make room for in the slot and I think the explosiveness is enticing, but I'm not going to take a slot wideout in the 50s in this draft personally. If I'm gonna go wideout I want an outside the hashes option there.

Shenault is impressive in a lot of ways, I think he's going to settle in with NFL route running quicker than Higgins for example, but I'm luke warm on the dude compared to some others as a fit for us. Stretching the field is crucial IMO.

Mims I fucking love in spite of the fact I have a strong dislike of all things Baylor when it comes to wideouts. Which kind of freaks me out tbh. He's got sneaky hands too with the push off skills. I'd love to hear the Rams' interview with him and how he handles the questions thrown at him.

Reagor I like far more than you do. He's got the juice to make dudes pay deep, runs a crisp tree, and he can go up for balls too so a good catch radius for his size. I think he'd move around well in this offense too IMO he's in play for us.

 

[PhillyRam]

The extra pick might give them the luxury of drafting a guy like Jeremy Chinn.

Could play the hybrid safety/LB role. He looks like a beast on his film. Just looks like a baller.

Never would consider a safety, but after looking at his film... I got another man crush.


View: https://youtu.be/bIeFrCZ1_6U

 

[FarNorth]

I realize you just threw some names up there but those guys are all over the map in their strengths and I expect the Rams to be very selective in bringing in the next wideout with an eye towards "making the offense great again."

The Rams do have the opportunity here to take a guy who needs a little work on the technical aspect of the position, i.e. route running, and prioritize explosiveness a bit thanks to JRey being on the roster and in a contract year where he should play well.

But... I still think McVay is going to target a route runner. If I had to guess what his directive to the scouts looks like...

1. Route running. Not a surprise of course by any stretch. But you don't want to get some dude who is so used to beating DBs with his athletic ability that he's going to take 3 years to get the route tree and even then can't sell every direction off the top of the stem. I am certain this is going to remain a priority.

2. Intelligence. McVay is a windfall for wideout types and QBs with his creative scheming and marrying run/pass but on the wideout side I think there's room to improve our offense with more optioned routes and adjustments as Goff keeps growing, which are going to require smart players. Kupp & Woody both are fantastic fits for this, Cooks was smart too in this offense. I think it's critical to the staff that whichever wideout they take impresses in interview.

3. Explosiveness. Wanted to put hands & catch radius here but as I look at what this WR corps actually needs it is not good hands. It's explosiveness. That's not to say I think they take a guy who has bad hands. They wouldn't of course. But I think they are looking for a field stretcher as part of that priority list.

So my question for you here is if you were to prioritize the three things above in every round (let's say McVay gave you those 3 things as the priority) how does that affect your list. I've been stacking things and gettin my film on since that trade but definitely curious to see your and the rest of the board's take on that.

This is a good assessment of qualities that McVay will be looking for. Not sure what prospects might fit best them?

I didn't just throw names out there. I made a list of all the guys expected to go from the late first to early third, watched them, and narrowed the list to the guys I liked. I didn't consider any guys who couldn't make plays down the field or run the routes asked of the player in Cooks's role (mainly vertical and speed cuts). Taking them one by one:

1. Tee Higgins - Long strider with sneaky vertical speed and contested catch dominance. Needs to improve his releases against press coverage. If he lasts to our first second round pick, we should sprint to the podium. He's a first round talent. I've seen comparisons to A.J. Green. They are justifiable.

2. Denzel Mims - Very physical with great athleticism and a massive catch radius. Has the speed to separate vertically, the quickness and physicality to uncover underneath, and the catch radius to be a red-zone threat. He also needs to improve his releases against press coverage. Unlikely to make our pick. Ultimate upside is Michael Thomas esque. DeVante Parker might be a more realistic expectation.

3. K.J. Hamler - Explosive speed reminiscent of DeSean Jackson. You can't teach his acceleration, explosive cuts, or top-end speed. Needs to polish up his routes, lacks size and play strength, and has average hands. Major vertical threat, can do damage on returns and jet sweeps/reverses, and could play inside or outside. Not going to make many contested catches. Upside seems to be DeSean Jackson, but may end up more like Ted Ginn Jr. with the Saints.

4. Laviska Shenault - Plays the game like Anquan Boldin and Juju. Built like a power HB, runs like a power HB, and uses his size and strength to bully CBs in his routes. Strong hands. Huge YAC threat. Needs to polish his route running (tips route depth based on tempo) and show better effort as a blocker. Has durability questions due to his physicality. Explosive acceleration allows him to separate, but his top-end speed isn't special. Will separate vertically because of his acceleration but fast defenders can recover to contest catches because he lacks the extra gear. Boom/bust prospect with MASSIVE upside.

On the guys I eliminated, Michael Pittman is a contested catch monster and very physical, but I think he's too tightly wound to run our route tree effectively. He's more of a linear athlete. Brandon Aiyuk is talented, but he makes more sense as a Woods replacement and needs a lot of development. Jalen Reagor is lethal with the ball in his hands, but he's small and not fast enough to play the role we want. Chase Claypool is super talented but too raw. I think he makes more sense as a guy who plays as sort of a TE/big slot hybrid. Devin Duvernay seems like a bad fit for our scheme, and his skill-set is kind of one of mismatched parts.

The only one I have really seen play is Higgins, and you're right, it's sprint to the podium if he's there. Mims also looks really good. Only problem is these guys might require a trade-up, but I for one would not totally rule that out since we now have two 2s, two 3s, a 4th and a couple of lower picks as draft capital. Wonder what it would take to move up in the second round?

Not enthusiastic about Hamlin. Don't want another small light receiver who doesn't have really good hands.

Need to see more of Shenault. This would be power over speed compared with Higgins or Mims, would need to be convinced this is the right direction. Might not open the field for Woods and Kupp enough. Almost seems like a TE. But maybe he could replace Everett not Reynolds.

 

[dang]

I don't know what was going on with Gurley, but he had some issues with drops in the passing game last season.
Up until the Super Bowl, he was steller in the passing game.

He had some key drops in the NO game as well.

 

[ramfan46]

Feels like the team will need a speedy deep threat. If they wait til later, will probably be a smaller burner type that could be used for a deep threat/jet sweep role.

 

[LouisvilleRam]

I didn't just throw names out there. I made a list of all the guys expected to go from the late first to early third, watched them, and narrowed the list to the guys I liked. I didn't consider any guys who couldn't make plays down the field or run the routes asked of the player in Cooks's role (mainly vertical and speed cuts). Taking them one by one:

1. Tee Higgins - Long strider with sneaky vertical speed and contested catch dominance. Needs to improve his releases against press coverage. If he lasts to our first second round pick, we should sprint to the podium. He's a first round talent. I've seen comparisons to A.J. Green. They are justifiable.

2. Denzel Mims - Very physical with great athleticism and a massive catch radius. Has the speed to separate vertically, the quickness and physicality to uncover underneath, and the catch radius to be a red-zone threat. He also needs to improve his releases against press coverage. Unlikely to make our pick. Ultimate upside is Michael Thomas esque. DeVante Parker might be a more realistic expectation.

3. K.J. Hamler - Explosive speed reminiscent of DeSean Jackson. You can't teach his acceleration, explosive cuts, or top-end speed. Needs to polish up his routes, lacks size and play strength, and has average hands. Major vertical threat, can do damage on returns and jet sweeps/reverses, and could play inside or outside. Not going to make many contested catches. Upside seems to be DeSean Jackson, but may end up more like Ted Ginn Jr. with the Saints.

4. Laviska Shenault - Plays the game like Anquan Boldin and Juju. Built like a power HB, runs like a power HB, and uses his size and strength to bully CBs in his routes. Strong hands. Huge YAC threat. Needs to polish his route running (tips route depth based on tempo) and show better effort as a blocker. Has durability questions due to his physicality. Explosive acceleration allows him to separate, but his top-end speed isn't special. Will separate vertically because of his acceleration but fast defenders can recover to contest catches because he lacks the extra gear. Boom/bust prospect with MASSIVE upside.

On the guys I eliminated, Michael Pittman is a contested catch monster and very physical, but I think he's too tightly wound to run our route tree effectively. He's more of a linear athlete. Brandon Aiyuk is talented, but he makes more sense as a Woods replacement and needs a lot of development. Jalen Reagor is lethal with the ball in his hands, but he's small and not fast enough to play the role we want. Chase Claypool is super talented but too raw. I think he makes more sense as a guy who plays as sort of a TE/big slot hybrid. Devin Duvernay seems like a bad fit for our scheme, and his skill-set is kind of one of mismatched parts.

What's your opinion of Donovan Peoples-Jones ? He's projected to go anywhere from the 3rd to 5th round and put up some really good numbers at the combine(vertical was of the charts)

 

[So Ram]

We now have 3 picks in the top 100.
We should be able to grab some solid prospects on Oline, Wr, lb or even rb

Not sold on drafting a Offensive lineman. Will see, but solid draft picks are almost forsure.

 

[So Ram]

I don't know what was going on with Gurley, but he had some issues with drops in the passing game last season.
Up until the Super Bowl, he was steller in the passing game.

Gurley used to stay after practice on the Jugs machine. Prided himself on being a good receiver. That helped open up the offense more.

 

[jrry32]

True, but I've noticed that Aiyuk was being used as a deep threat for ASU, especially in his junior year with N'Keal Harry being the big redzone target. I think he could fit into the role of Cooks, given enough seasoning behind Kupp, Woods, and Reynolds. Claypool proved that he can be an outside threat with great speed., especially against Georgia (although Kmet really stole the show in that game). He may not be able to easily separate, but I see him as, say, a Golladay type, a guy who can stretch the field, pluck the ball out of midair on any type of coverage.

I'd gladly take either Aiyuk or Claypool.

I respect your opinion. I just don't share it.

Thing that bothers me with Higgins is his routes. Dude rounds things off too much for my taste, but will admit the thought of adding a 6'4" legit X type receiver to this offense would be exciting. He'd be able to stretch it out for us just fine with the deep routes right out the gate.

Hamler we could make room for in the slot and I think the explosiveness is enticing, but I'm not going to take a slot wideout in the 50s in this draft personally. If I'm gonna go wideout I want an outside the hashes option there.

Shenault is impressive in a lot of ways, I think he's going to settle in with NFL route running quicker than Higgins for example, but I'm luke warm on the dude compared to some others as a fit for us. Stretching the field is crucial IMO.

Mims I fucking love in spite of the fact I have a strong dislike of all things Baylor when it comes to wideouts. Which kind of freaks me out tbh. He's got sneaky hands too with the push off skills. I'd love to hear the Rams' interview with him and how he handles the questions thrown at him.

Reagor I like far more than you do. He's got the juice to make dudes pay deep, runs a crisp tree, and he can go up for balls too so a good catch radius for his size. I think he'd move around well in this offense too IMO he's in play for us.

Higgins does need to improve as a route runner, but I think he'll get there. He was able to get away with dominating guys in college based on his physical tools. Still, that's a skill-set you run to the podium to get. He dominates in the air and can run away from talented CBs. He needs to improve his route sharpness, his releases, and his physicality. Okudah, who is an even better athlete, gave him problems because he had the athleticism to stick to him and the physicality to knock Higgins off his game.

I'm not drafting Hamler for him to play the slot. I know PSU used him there, but you don't put speed like his in the slot. You put it outside and use it to dictate how defenses defend you.

On Reagor, I didn't see the juice. Yeah, if you give him a free release and don't transition in time, he can burn you. But he's a WR with 4.4 speed. That's not surprising. A lot of people were shocked he only ran a 4.47 (IIRC). There were rumors he would run in the 4.2s. Watching his film, he plays at 4.4. Hamler and Ruggs are noticeably more explosive and faster. Reagor is very quick and has great acceleration, but he doesn't just have the rocket up his ass those two do. I think he's a slot guy. He'll likely be a very good slot guy, but that's where I see him. If he really polishes his game, he might stay outside as a Z. But he's not the same type of player that Hamler and Ruggs are.

I'd say the potential for these guys are Hamler being like DeSean Jackson, Ruggs being like peak Mike Wallace, and Reagor being like Emmanuel Sanders. Manny Sanders is a damn good player, and Reagor might be too if he polishes his game and doesn't let his motor run hot and cold like it did in 2019.

On Shenault, I think he can stretch the field. He doesn't have that extra gear, but because of his acceleration, big body, physicality, and hands, he could be a lethal guy on the outside if you leave him 1 on 1. He accelerates past you, stacks you, and then bullies you while the ball is in the air. It works for a lot of guys in the NFL (DeAndre Hopkins, Mike Evans, Michael Thomas, etc.).

What's your opinion of Donovan Peoples-Jones ? He's projected to go anywhere from the 3rd to 5th round and put up some really good numbers at the combine(vertical was of the charts)

He didn't stand out to me. He has potential, but he's not really a Cooks replacement. There's not much explosion to his game. Great body control, has some quickness, might develop as a route runner, big body, can snatch the ball. Seems like more of a big slot or a #2 possession-type WR if he develops.

 

[Mojo Ram]

The OL is better in 2020? With the same exact players as last year you cant be so sure man.

With a tweaked, evolved scheme i think so. That's based on nothing but my opinion though so...

 

[PhillyRam]

Not sold on drafting a Offensive lineman. Will see, but solid draft picks are almost forsure.

OL value will be there between 90-140. That's why I see them moving down with one of those 2's to get an extra early 4th.

That should get them a solid G prospect in the 4th and maybe a C like Hennessy at the end of round 3 or a LT prospect like Heck.

Maybe if they move Havenstein then they go get a OT earlier.

 

[LouisvilleRam]

I respect your opinion. I just don't share it.



Higgins does need to improve as a route runner, but I think he'll get there. He was able to get away with dominating guys in college based on his physical tools. Still, that's a skill-set you run to the podium to get. He dominates in the air and can run away from talented CBs. He needs to improve his route sharpness, his releases, and his physicality. Okudah, who is an even better athlete, gave him problems because he had the athleticism to stick to him and the physicality to knock Higgins off his game.

I'm not drafting Hamler for him to play the slot. I know PSU used him there, but you don't put speed like his in the slot. You put it outside and use it to dictate how defenses defend you.

On Reagor, I didn't see the juice. Yeah, if you give him a free release and don't transition in time, he can burn you. But he's a WR with 4.4 speed. That's not surprising. A lot of people were shocked he only ran a 4.47 (IIRC). There were rumors he would run in the 4.2s. Watching his film, he plays at 4.4. Hamler and Ruggs are noticeably more explosive and faster. Reagor is very quick and has great acceleration, but he doesn't just have the rocket up his ass those two do. I think he's a slot guy. He'll likely be a very good slot guy, but that's where I see him. If he really polishes his game, he might stay outside as a Z. But he's not the same type of player that Hamler and Ruggs are.

I'd say the potential for these guys are Hamler being like DeSean Jackson, Ruggs being like peak Mike Wallace, and Reagor being like Emmanuel Sanders. Manny Sanders is a damn good player, and Reagor might be too if he polishes his game and doesn't let his motor run hot and cold like it did in 2019.

On Shenault, I think he can stretch the field. He doesn't have that extra gear, but because of his acceleration, big body, physicality, and hands, he could be a lethal guy on the outside if you leave him 1 on 1. He accelerates past you, stacks you, and then bullies you while the ball is in the air. It works for a lot of guys in the NFL (DeAndre Hopkins, Mike Evans, Michael Thomas, etc.).



He didn't stand out to me. He has potential, but he's not really a Cooks replacement. There's not much explosion to his game. Great body control, has some quickness, might develop as a route runner, big body, can snatch the ball. Seems like more of a big slot or a #2 possession-type WR if he develops.

Peoples-Jones numbers were down last year but had a huge Sophomore season.I think he would be a nice replacement for Reynolds if he test the market next year which I think he will because I think he'll put up some big time numbers this season with Cooks gone.

 

[Mojo Ram]

I do not believe either of those passes was Cooks fault. On the sideline pass the Patriot defender grabbed Cooks left arm and pulled it down before the ball even got there. That was pass interference, although the refs aren't going to call anything that close in a Super Bowl. On the end zone pass, Goff was a second late and gave the Patriot defender time to catch up and hit Cooks just as the ball arrived. That was a great defensive play.

Agreed.

 

[Mojo Ram]

The Super Bowl will bother all of us for many reasons, the main fact was the Rams played their worst game of the year and Cooks was part of it.

It bothers me that in terms of offense and defense, we got the worst and best performance, respectively, we saw under the McV/Phillips run.

 

[Gandalf]

OL value will be there between 90-140. That's why I see them moving down with one of those 2's to get an extra early 4th.

That should get them a solid G prospect in the 4th and maybe a C like Hennessy at the end of round 3 or a LT prospect like Heck.

Maybe if they move Havenstein then they go get a OT earlier.

Quite a few good interior lineman will have good value in the 3rd and 4th rounds. I would be very surprised if we don't trade back at least once.

 

[Mojo Ram]

I don't know what was going on with Gurley, but he had some issues with drops in the passing game last season.
Up until the Super Bowl, he was steller in the passing game.

Just an opinion, but it could have been the mental side of that knee, having to turn away from the defense, make the catch, turn and run. TG certainly looked less confident out in front of the blockers since late in '18.

 

[jrry32]

Peoples-Jones numbers were down last year but had a huge Sophomore season.I think he would be a nice replacement for Reynolds if he test the market next year which I think he will because I think he'll put up some big time numbers this season with Cooks gone.

Like I said to my good friend, Memento, I respect your opinion, but I don't share it. His sophomore season was fairly average, and I don't think he has the explosive acceleration or the extra gear to consistently pose problems for NFL CBs vertically.