The Houston Texans decided against trading wide receiver Brandin Cooks at the NFL trade deadline despite significant speculation that they would do so. Apparently, the lack of a trade was down to the Texans valuing Cooks extremely highly.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Thursday that the Texans asked teams for a second- and fourth-round pick in exchange for Cooks. Any trade partner was also expected to take on Cooks’ full $18 million salary for 2023, which is fully guaranteed.
One of the main reasons Houston was unable to trade WR Brandin Cooks was because it wanted second- and fourth-round picks in return for him, per sources. No team was willing to trade a 2 and 4, and assume Cooks’ $18 million fully guaranteed money for next season.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 3, 2022
Cooks is a good player, but not good enough to justify that sort of spend. By comparison, the Chicago Bears were able to acquire Chase Claypool, a wide receiver younger than Cooks and significantly cheaper for 2023, for only a second-round pick.
The Texans may ultimately come to regret sticking to their high asking price. They wound up getting nothing for Cooks, and now they have a disgruntled player on their hands.
