The Dallas Cowboys face a decision on the future of wide receiver Brandin Cooks, whom they traded for last offseason but who has been unable to get consistent touches.
Through Week 9, Cooks has just 17 receptions for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns for Dallas. ESPN’s Aaron Schatz noted the Cowboys could opt to move on from Cooks this offseason if things do not turn around for him.
“Cooks was supposed to improve the Dallas offense in two spots,” Schatz wrote in an October 27, 2023, story about “who is not working with their new teams.” “He was going to give the Cowboys a strong, consistent No. 2 wide receiver to help take attention away from CeeDee Lamb, and that would in turn kick Michael Gallup down to the No. 3 spot to improve that position as well. It hasn’t worked out that way. The Dallas offense is 19th in pass DVOA this season [heading into Week 8], and Cooks has been part of the problem.
ing getting open. Cooks ranks 72nd out of 81 qualifying receivers in ESPN’s Receiver Tracking Metrics. His open score of 40 ranks 70th. Cooks does a little better in DVOA, which measures value per target, but even there he is 56th. Lamb, who is not part of the problem, ranks 12th.
“The Cowboys can move on from Cooks after this season if things don’t turn around. Designating him as a post-June 1 cut would put $2 million of dead money on their cap in each of the next three years but save them $8 million on the cap in 2024.”
