Here are today’s practice squad transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Miami Dolphins
New Orleans Saints
San Francisco 49ers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Although the Texans engaged in discussions with teams about what would have been the fourth trade of Brandin Cooks‘ career, the ninth-year veteran remains on the rebuilding team. This may be a point of contention now, but with the trade deadline passed, Cooks’ options are limited.
Pre-deadline reports connected Cooks to several teams — the Rams, Giants, Vikings, Packers and Chiefs — but Ed Werder of ESPN.com notes the Cowboys were in on the ninth-year pass catcher as well. Dallas and Houston discussed Cooks leading right up to the deadline, but the previously reported stumbling blocks derailed an intra-Texas swap (Twitter link).
Cooks’ $18MM 2023 salary — an amount fully guaranteed via the April 2022 extension he signed — was an issue the Cowboys could not move past, per Werder, who adds the Texas teams could not agree on draft compensation as well.
The Texans were reported to be seeking a second-round pick for Cooks — the same price they sought in the spring — but the nomadic wideout was never considered likely to fetch such compensation considering the terms of his new contract (two years, $39MM) and the slight production dip this season. So Cooks (32 receptions, 354 yards, no TDs in 2022) remains with the Texans, though he was not at their Tuesday practice due to a personal reason.
Cooks, 29, sent out a tweet appearing to indicate frustration with his employer. With the trade deadline passed, the Texans have limited options with their top receiver. It cannot yet be assumed the Cooks situation will devolve an Odell Beckham Jr.-level place, but the star pass catcher’s path out of Cleveland could be a blueprint for Cooks. Then again, Cooks just signed a through-2024 extension to stay with the Texans this spring. It is not like the Texans were ever poised to compete in 2022, either, so it will be interesting to hear what has changed regarding Cooks’ situation since April.
The Cowboys have CeeDee Lamb locked in as their No. 1 wide receiver, but the team misses Amari Cooper. Michael Gallup, whom Dallas re-signed on a five-year deal this offseason, has only 135 receiving yards in five games since returning from his ACL tear. Sixth-year wideout Noah Brown (339 yards) is Dallas’ second-leading pass catcher. This crew could stabilize with Dak Prescott back at the controls, but the Cowboys were on the lookout for receiving help in the days leading up to the deadline.
The Cowboys are no stranger to in-season receiver trades, having sent a first-rounder for Cooper in 2018 and having dealt a first-rounder and change for Roy Williams in 2008. Unlike the Williams swap, the Cooper trade produced immediate dividends and helped Dallas to the playoffs that year. Two years after Cooper’s five-year, $100MM extension, however, the Cowboys decided he was not worth the cost and shipped him to the Browns for a low-level return. Considering where the receiver market went in the coming months, the Cooper pick-swap trade did not age well for the Cowboys.
Dallas balking at Cooks’ high salary is not unique; other teams did the same as the deadline neared. A report indicated Cooks was willing to give up some guaranteed cash to facilitate a trade back to the Rams, but would he follow Beckham’s lead in doing so to be released? Like OBJ, Cooks has already played several seasons on lucrative contracts. This season will bump him past $90MM in career earnings. Barring a release, however, Cooks must finish this season with the Texans. The team could reassess this situation in 2023, if a trade — almost certainly for far less value compared to Cooks’ first three trades, which collectively involved two first-rounders and a second from 2017-20 — is to go down.
Today’s practice squad transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Miami Dolphins
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brandin Cooks is available, and Dan Graziano of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter) the Texans are in discussions involving the ninth-year receiver. But Cooks’ $18MM guaranteed 2023 salary — which came to pass after Houston re-signed him on a two-year, $39MM pact in April — has proven to be an impediment here. Teams are not moving on Cooks unless the Texans pick up a chunk of that salary. Cooks, 29, was linked to giving up some guaranteed money to facilitate a trade back to the Rams. But it is unlikely he will give up too much cash to be moved. The Giants and Vikings have also been connected to the thrice-traded Cooks. For what it’s worth, Cooks was not at Texans practice Tuesday. Personal reasons — not an imminent trade — are believed to be behind Cooks’ absence, NFL.com’s Garafolo tweets.
With the deadline in less than three hours, here is the latest from the trade front:
Having seen offseason trade candidate Darius Slayton become Daniel Jones‘ top target in recent weeks, the Giants have a need at wide receiver ahead of Tuesday’s deadline. How much are they willing to give up to acquire one?
Recently linked to Brandin Cooks, the Giants have indeed called the Texans on the oft-traded pass catcher, Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports tweets. Cooks will not cost what fellow Giants target Jerry Jeudy would, but the ninth-year veteran has been connected to other destinations — most notably the Rams — as well.
Cooks, 29, has been mentioned as being willing to give up some guaranteed money to facilitate a trade. That arrangement may only apply to the Rams, and it would surprise to the thrice-dealt wideout agree to give up too much cash. Cooks signed a two-year, $39MM extension with the Texans, and while they are amid a rebuild, the veteran receiver did well to score $36MM fully guaranteed. The former Saint, Patriot and Ram is not quite on pace for a seventh 1,000-yard season, as he has 32 catches for 354 yards, but he still carries some value ahead of the deadline. Regardless of Cooks’ status, the Rams join the Giants as parties interested in receiver help.
Jeudy remains a Giants target as well, per Vacchiano, but ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan adds (via Twitter) the Broncos’ asking price is steep. Unlike fellow Broncos trade chip Bradley Chubb, Jeudy is under contract through 2023 and can be kept through 2024 via the fifth-year option. The Giants should not be expected to part with more than a Day 3 pick for a wideout, Vacchiano adds.
The Giants entered the season closer to rebuilding than contending, and the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy adds that indications are GM Joe Schoen does not view his team as a receiver away from serious contention. Schoen is interested in an upgrade, per Dunleavy, but it appears Jeudy — a player the Broncos do not appear eager to deal — will likely cost too much for the Giants’ liking.
New York’s decision to ship Kadarius Toney to Kansas City does well to illustrate a belief one receiver addition will not be something that vaults the team onto the Super Bowl-contending tier. The Giants did collect an extra third-rounder for Toney, giving them four Day 1 or Day 2 picks in 2023. But those selections are more likely to be used on college talent than sacrificed to help a surprisingly successful 2022 squad.
The Giants have Slayton and second-rounder Wan’Dale Robinson as their top receiving assets, but journeyman Marcus Johnson played 86% of Big Blue’s offensive snaps Sunday in Seattle. The team has Kenny Golladay rehabbing an MCL sprain; the free agency bust has not played since Week 4. Golladay, whom the Giants dangled in trades this summer, has two receptions this season. The Giants will almost certainly make the $18MM-per-year player a 2023 cap casualty.
It will be interesting if the Giants’ weeks-long goal of acquiring receiver help will come to fruition, and while the team did make a buyer’s trade at the 2019 deadline (Leonard Williams), big-name assistance probably should not be expected by Tuesday. In 2023, however, the Giants — who have Slayton and the injured Sterling Shepard on expiring contracts — will undoubtedly be busy at the position.
Here are the minor moves leading into Sunday’s slate of games:
Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Carolina Panthers
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Rams
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
New York Jets
Philadelphia Eagles
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Washington Commanders
Brandin Cooks is emerging as a popular name leading up to Tuesday’s trade deadline. We heard yesterday that the Chiefs, Packers, and Rams were among the squads looking into the veteran receiver, but it sounds like Cooks may have a preference for where he lands.
[RELATED: Chiefs, Packers, Rams Looking Into Texans’ Brandin Cooks]
A source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com that Cooks could be willing to sacrifice some of his 2023 salary “in order to escape the Texans and return to the Rams.” Cooks has a fully-guaranteed $18MM salary coming his way in 2023, a factor that’s complicated trade talks so far. The financials of a trade would be a whole lot easier if Cooks was willing to give up some of that money, and Florio suggests the Texans could also eat some of the contract. Indeed, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com writes, Houston is willing to deal Cooks. Schefter adds the Giants and Vikings as potential landing spots.
Florio compares the situation to that of the Browns and Odell Beckham Jr. from 2021. Cleveland ultimately couldn’t find a taker for OBJ, but the wide receiver willingly gave up a significant chunk of his contract to get off the squad. There doesn’t seem to be any indication that Cooks is looking to get out of Houston at any cost, but it sounds like he’d consider reducing his salary to help facilitate a trade.
Cooks spent two seasons with the Rams in 2018 and 2019. He had one of his most productive seasons during his first year in Los Angeles, hauling in 80 receptions for 1,204 yards and five touchdowns. He was limited to only 583 yards in 14 games in 2019, and he was dealt to Houston the following offseason. Since joining the Texans, Cooks has had a pair of 1,000-yard receiving seasons. In six games this year, the veteran has hauled in 28 receptions for 281 yards and one touchdown.
Cooper Kupp leads the way for Rams receivers, but Allen Robinson hasn’t been able to click during his first season in Los Angeles. The Rams will soon welcome back Van Jefferson at the position, but per Florio, the team still wants more speed at WR.
Days away from this year’s trade deadline (3pm CT, Nov. 1), a few teams have made some in-season moves to bolster their rosters. Several squads have also restructured contracts this season to create additional space. That extra room will matter as most teams will consider adding or subtracting costs before Tuesday’s deadline.
Here is how teams’ cap-space numbers (courtesy of OverTheCap) look ahead of the deadline:
The Browns have held the top spot for months, and the gulf between their cap-space figure and the field almost certainly stems from a desire to carry over cap space before Deshaun Watson‘s cap number spikes from $9.4MM to a runaway-record $54.99MM. Cleveland has recently been linked to creating more cap space. Interest has come in for Greedy Williams, who is in the final year of his rookie contract, and Kareem Hunt. Although the Browns did not grant Hunt’s summer trade request, it may now take only a fourth-round pick for Cleveland to deal its backup running back.
Another potential seller could move up on this list while creating some additional space in 2023. The Broncos are believed to have made Jerry Jeudy available. Unlike fellow trade chip Bradley Chubb, Jeudy is under contract for 2023 (on a $4.83MM cap number). Denver appears more likely to move Chubb. That departure would remove the franchise tag from the team’s equation in 2023 — barring a tag for fellow 2023 UFA-to-be Dre’Mont Jones — thus freeing up more free agency funds. It will be interesting if the Broncos, if they are to move Chubb, agree to eat much of his fifth-year option salary. George Paton‘s club took on most of Von Miller‘s 2021 money to increase draft compensation.
The Eagles are still near the top despite acquiring Robert Quinn. Philadelphia is paying just $684K of Quinn’s contract, which now runs through 2022 instead of 2024. Chicago is on the hook for $7.1MM. The Bears are on track to have a gargantuan lead on the field for 2023 cap space. They are projected to hold more than $125MM next year, according to OverTheCap.
New Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney checks in at just $784K on their 2022 cap sheet. The former Giants first-rounder’s figures bump to $1.9MM (2023) and $2.53MM (’24). Kansas City recently restructured Travis Kelce‘s deal, creating some wiggle room for the Toney addition. The Chiefs, who did not touch Patrick Mahomes‘ deal this year, restructured Kelce’s contract twice in 2022. Thursday’s trade hit the Giants with a $2.33MM dead-money charge. Toney will count $3.67MM in dead money for the Giants in 2023.
The Panthers picked up nearly $19MM in 2022 dead money via the Robbie Anderson and Christian McCaffrey trades. Unlike the Eagles and Bears, last week’s Panthers-49ers McCaffrey swap did not involve Carolina taking on additional salary. McCaffrey’s offseason restructure dropped his 2022 base salary to the league minimum; the 49ers have him on their books at just $690K. McCaffrey’s record-setting extension will still represent $18.35MM in dead money on the Panthers’ 2023 cap, but his nonguaranteed base salaries from 2023-25 ($11.8MM, $11.8MM, $12MM) transferred fully from Carolina to San Francisco.
On the subject of 2022 dead money, the Bears lead the way with $80.32MM. The Falcons added to their total this month, however, by trading Deion Jones to the Browns. That deal saddled the Falcons with $11.38MM in additional dead money — accompanying the franchise’s record-setting Matt Ryan dead-money hit ($40.53MM) — and ballooned Atlanta’s overall total to $78.57MM. Ryan is off the Falcons’ books after this year, but Jones will carry a $12.14MM dead-money figure in 2023.
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
Detroit Lions
Houston Texans
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
Chicago Bears
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Chargers
New England Patriots
New York Giants
Philadelphia Eagles
Tampa Bay Buccaneers