Player

Brandin Cooks

The shape of his career is unusual — six 1,000-yard regular seasons, all before age 28, spread across four franchises and four QBs. Every team that traded for him got at least one 1,000-yard year before the next move. That's why he kept getting traded instead of cut.

FanIQ Research · May 10, 2026 · 5 facts, every one from the play-by-play

Six 1,000-yard regular seasons — for NO, NE, LA, and HOU. Cooks hit the mark with Brees, Brady, Goff, and Watson at QB.

Trend

Cooks' 1,000-yard regular seasons

Year	Tm	Rec	Yds	TD
2015	NO	84	1,138	9
2016	NO	78	1,173	8
2017	NE	65	1,082	7
2018	LA	80	1,204	5
2020	HOU	81	1,150	6
2021	HOU	90	1,037	6

Receiving yards by season (regular season)

Season	Yards
NO	550
NO	1138
NO	1173
NE	1082
LA	1204
LA	583
HOU	1150
HOU	1037
HOU	699
DAL	657
DAL	259
NO/BUF	279

Why it matters. The shape of his career is unusual — six 1,000-yard regular seasons, all before age 28, spread across four franchises and four QBs. Every team that traded for him got at least one 1,000-yard year before the next move. That's why he kept getting traded instead of cut.

Six franchises and counting — Cooks has more team stops than any modern 1,000-yard WR except DeSean Jackson.

Split

Cooks' team-by-team regular-season production

Tm	Years	Gms	Rec	Yds	TD
NO	2014-16, 2025	50	234	3,026	20
NE	2017	16	65	1,082	7
LA	2018-19	29	122	1,787	7
HOU	2020-22	44	228	2,886	15
DAL	2023-24	26	80	916	11
BUF	2025	4	5	114	0

Most team stops among WRs with 5,000+ regular-season yards since 2014

Player	Teams	Yds
Brandin Cooks	6	9,811
DeSean Jackson	6	5,146
DeAndre Hopkins	5	12,493
Odell Beckham Jr.	5	7,987
Allen Robinson	5	7,058

Why it matters. Most high-volume WRs stick with one or two teams over a decade because trading them is expensive and disruptive. Cooks is the rare case where the talent kept producing but the team-fit equation kept breaking, so a new GM was always willing to pay the trade tax.

Back-to-back Super Bowls for different teams — Cooks went NE in 2017 then LA in 2018, and posted 120 yards in SB LIII.

Rare

Cooks' Super Bowl appearances

Season	Game	Tm	Rec	Yds
2017	SB LII	NE	1	23
2018	SB LIII	LA	8	120

Why it matters. Reaching consecutive Super Bowls with two different teams is something almost no skill player ever does — the trade window is too narrow and contenders rarely move proven receivers. Cooks pulled it off because both Belichick and McVay were willing to deal a first-round pick for a 24-year-old WR1.

From the 2014 first-round WR class, Cooks ranks 2nd in career yards behind only Mike Evans — outproducing Beckham, Watkins, and Benjamin.

Comparison

2014 1st-round WR class — career regular-season totals

Player	Pick	Rec	Yds	TD
Mike Evans	#7	866	13,052	108
Brandin Cooks	#20	734	9,811	60
Odell Beckham Jr.	#12	575	7,987	59
Sammy Watkins	#4	364	5,384	34
Kelvin Benjamin	#28	208	3,000	20

Why it matters. Watkins and Beckham were the marquee names of the 2014 draft; Cooks was the second WR the Saints took that year. A decade later, Cooks has 3,900+ more yards than Watkins and 1,800+ more than Beckham, despite playing the journeyman role neither of them did.

Cooks played for two teams in 2025 — opening the year in New Orleans, then catching on with Buffalo by Week 13.

Anomaly

Cooks' 2025 regular season — NO then BUF

Tm	Weeks	Gms	Rec	Yds	TD
NO	1-9	9	19	165	0
BUF	13-17	4	5	114	0

Why it matters. At 32, Cooks is no longer the WR1 he was in his New England-Rams-Houston run, but he's still on rosters that need a veteran route-runner. The 2025 NO-then-BUF path also closes a loop — he started his career in New Orleans and returned a decade later before being traded again.

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