Texans trade Brandin Cooks to Cowboys

Brandin Cooks is on the move again.

The 2013 first-round receiver has been traded for the fourth time in his career. Via Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, Cooks has been shipped to the Cowboys for a 2023 fifth-round pick and a 2024 sixth-round pick.

Cooks wanted to be traded before the 2022 deadline, but his guaranteed pay of $18 million in 2023 became an impediment. It’s currently unclear whether the Texans will be paying any of the guaranteed money, or whether Cooks has reduced his salary to accommodate the deal.

The move comes a year after the Cowboys traded receiver Amari Cooper in lieu of paying him $20 million. That looked like a mistake in hindsight, especially as the receiver market thereafter exploded.

Cooks has six 1,000-yard receiving seasons. Last year, he caught 57 passes for 699 yards and three touchdowns.

Cooks has now been traded by the Saints to the Patriots, but the Patriots to the Rams, by the Rams to the Texans, and by the Texans to the Cowboys.