WR · NO · GWTTKB

Brandin Cooks — fantasy football 2026

Every game, every stat category, and what the board says. 3.99 points per game in 2025, usage worth 5.4.

32 years old · 12 seasons of experience · 2014 draft class

Updated 2026-08-16 · free, no account, no paywall
Every figure below comes from our database. Where a stat is not held, the row is absent rather than zero.

The offense he plays in, 2026

New Orleans Saints returns 5 of 6 continuity slots, replacing rb1. Tyler Shough at quarterback, Kellen Moore as head coach, Doug Nussmeier calling it. The offense projects to 34.1 pass attempts a game at high confidence and 25.9 rushes.

In: Jordyn Tyson (wr2), Bryce Lance (wr5), Barion Brown (wr6), Bub Means (wr7), Travis Etienne Jr. (rb1), Oscar Delp (te2). Out: Kevin Austin Jr (wr3), Brandin Cooks (wr4), Taysom Hill (te2).

The projected target split across the offense:

Chris Olave22.1%
Jordyn Tyson18.6%
Juwan Johnson12.2%
Devaughn Vele8.3%
Oscar Delp7.1%
Barion Brown6.6%

Our written view on this offense in 2026

Key additions: signed RB Travis Etienne Jr in free agency on massive 4 year deal. Signed TE Noah Fant. Drafted TE oscar Delp. Drafted WR Jordyn Tyson 8th overall.

Key departures: No key departures

Notes: Saints draft Jordyn Tyson 8th overall. To start he will likely be the 1B in the offense behind Chris Olave. Hurts Olave potential, but Olave is highly talented WR. Shough surrounded with Weapons in New Orleans by signing Travis Etienne Jr. in free agency (lots of potential to be high producer). Alvin Kamara value is toast. Interested to see how Olave & Tyson split target share & if the rest of the offense other than Etienne holds fantasy value. Vele is a slept on and talented WR that could also break out in 2026. His breakout to slow down the Jordyn Tyson full breakout year 1.

How the volume number was reached: Same QB Tyler Shough returning — anchor to 2025 actuals (34.4 att/g); Regressed 30% toward league mean 33.5, floored at 30 → 34.1 att/g.

Offensive environment: NO rates 21.4 against a league average of 23, 1.6 below it on opponent-adjusted least squares (multi-capture merge).

2026 schedule

Opponent-adjusted pass defense faced, against 2025 ratings. Positive is an easier slate.

Full season+0.9 · neutral
Weeks 1–6-0.3 · neutral
Weeks 12–17+1.6 · easier
Fantasy playoffs (15–17)+5.4 · easier

Read this narrowly. Our own testing found that season-long strength of schedule does not survive as a draft input — defensive quality is among the least stable team properties year to year, and a preseason slate is built on last year's identities. The playoff-weeks column is the only one we would let break a tie, and even then it is a tiebreaker rather than a reason. The finding.

What happened when he missed time

From the absence record rather than a depth chart — who actually gained when he was out.

SeasonGames missedMain beneficiaryTheir PPR gain
20223Chris Moore+7.1

Dynasty context not redraft

Everything in this section is about his dynasty trade value — what he is worth as a long-term asset in the trade market. It is not a forecast of his 2026 fantasy scoring. A player can be a fine redraft pick while his dynasty value falls, and the reverse. The redraft read is above; this is a different question with a different answer.

Where he sits in the dynasty value cycle

His dynasty value has moved -27.7% over the last twelve months. The market cycle classifies him as post-crash. The base rate that applies: after a -25% crash, WRs recover only 15% of the time (keep falling 85%).

For context on how long this lasts at the position: the average career at his position produces 2.1 elite seasons and 2.6 startable seasons.

The five most similar seasons, and what their dynasty value did next

Matched on production profile — production-driven (pedigree ignored). The last column is how that player’s dynasty value moved the following year — a market outcome, not a scoring one.

PlayerSeasonTheir PPGSimilarityNext year
Kendrick Bourne20245.474%+36%
Robert Woods20242.771%+13.5%
Marquez Valdes-Scantling20246.571%-42.7%
Marquez Valdes-Scantling20233.569%+32.9%
K.J. Osborn20242.766%-15.1%

Of the 5 with a following season on record, 3 gained value, 2 lost it and 0 held roughly flat.

Four years of dynasty value

02,0004,000202120222023202420252026
Monthly superflex value, 2020-04 to 2026-07. Down 80% across the series, peaking at 4,070.

The player

Draft capital and athletic profile

Height5′10″
Weight189 lb
40-yard dash4.33s
Vertical36″
Broad jump120″
3-cone6.76s
Shuttle3.81s

Availability and volatility

Career PPR per game11.4
Week-to-week variation0.7
Boom rate24.6%
Bust rate24.6%
Games missed per season0.8
Injury historyCalf, Knee
Correlation between his posted line and his actual score-0.07

That correlation is how closely the books’ posted line tracked what he actually scored, week to week. A higher number means the market has him figured out and there is less to exploit; a lower one means his weeks are harder to price.

Injury type matters more than games missed. Measured across our injury database, knee and foot returns stay below a player’s pre-injury baseline for all three of the first games back, while hamstring returns over-recover by the third.

The record, season by season

2025 · NO · 13 games

His best game was Week 17 against PHI — 14.1 PPR on 6 targets and a 18.2% target share, in a game that finished 12-13. His worst was Week 16 against CLE at 0, on 1 targets, final score 23-20. Across 13 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 12 times. In the 6 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 4.6; in the 7 decided by more, 3.5. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 5.4 points per game. He scored 3.99, 19.4% below it. The engine classified the season as unlucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1ARI13-205.6342609.8%76%
2SF21-264.6222605.9%68%
3SEA13-445.43524012.2%70%
4BUF19-315.23422016%90%
5NYG26-141.511503.2%45%
6NE19-253.1112103.8%64%
7CHI14-261.311303.2%70%
8TB3-235.2342208%61%
9LA10-343.62316012.5%56%
13PIT26-72.3111304.3%23%
15NE35-310030011.5%34%
16CLE23-20001005.6%24%
17PHI12-1314.146101018.2%51%

Production

Receptions24
Targets36
Receiving yards279
Touchdowns0
Points per game3.99
Yards per target7.75
Catch rate66.67%

Role

Snap share56.31%
Target share8.78%
Air-yards share18.83%
WOPR0.262
RACR0.795

Efficiency

Average depth of target25.9
Yards after catch per reception1.2
Yards before catch per reception21.6
Total YAC6
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0.2%
Passer rating when targeted83.1
Receiving EPA per game1.23

Scoring position

Red-zone targets2
Red-zone target share3.9%
End-zone target share4.3%
Expected receiving TDs0.3
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-0.3

Who else ate

The offense threw it 591 times. He took 4.44% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Chris Olave27.71%
Juwan Johnson18.12%
Rashid Shaheed11.72%
Alvin Kamara6.93%
Devaughn Vele6.93%
Brandin Cooks 4.44%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Spencer Rattler7183.817.067.73%
Tyler Shough6184.28.4410.02%

Blowouts against close games

4 of his 13 games were blowouts, 31.8% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 4.13 in those and 4.57 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2024 · DAL · 10 games

His best game was Week 1 against CLE — 14.5 PPR on 7 targets and a 22.6% target share, in a game that finished 33-17. His worst was Week 4 against NYG at 2.6, on 4 targets, final score 20-15. Across 10 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 7 times. In the 6 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 6; in the 4 decided by more, 8.4. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 9.6 points per game. He scored 6.96, 27.3% below it. The engine classified the season as very_unlucky. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 2 against 3.01 expected, a gap of -1.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1CLE33-1714.54740122.6%79%
2NO19-443.6221904.9%81%
3BAL25-283.62616012%80%
4NYG20-152.61416015.4%82%
13NYG27-2010.63716119.4%39%
14CIN20-277.313319.7%60%
15CAR30-146.43534017.9%63%
16TB26-247.8334809.1%77%
17PHI7-419.24852027.6%68%
18WAS19-2343915027.3%69%

Production

Receptions26
Targets54
Receiving yards259
Carries3
Rushing yards-3
Touchdowns3
Points per game6.96
Yards per target4.8
Catch rate48.15%
Yards per carry-1

Role

Snap share69.8%
Target share16.59%
Air-yards share24.09%
WOPR0.418
RACR0.576

Efficiency

Average depth of target11.7
Yards after catch per reception2.1
Yards before catch per reception7.8
Total YAC55
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted65.3
Receiving EPA per game-1.11
Rushing EPA per game-0.28

Scoring position

Red-zone targets8
Red-zone target share11.6%
End-zone target share17.9%
Red-zone carry share1.8%
Expected receiving TDs3.01
Actual receiving TDs2
Receiving TD luck-1.01
Expected rushing TDs0.04

Who else ate

The offense threw it 635 times. He took 8.72% of the targets. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

CeeDee Lamb24.56%
Jake Ferguson13.89%
Jalen Tolbert12.76%
Brandin Cooks 8.72%
Kavontae Turpin8.4%
Rico Dowdle7.92%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 3 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Cooper Rush5268.265.8816.74%
Dak Prescott4196.084.7913.72%
Trey Lance1941.6727.3%

Blowouts against close games

2 of his 10 games were blowouts, 18.4% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 6.4 in those and 5.98 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2023 · DAL · 16 games

His best game was Week 10 against NYG — 32.3 PPR on 10 targets and a 22.7% target share, in a game that finished 49-17. His worst was Week 9 against PHI at 1.7, on 2 targets, final score 23-28. Across 16 games he cleared 20 points 1 time and came in under 8 points 8 times. In the 5 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 12.1; in the 11 decided by more, 10.2. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 9 points per game. He scored 10.82, 20.7% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 6 against 3.47 expected, a gap of 2.5.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1NYG40-04.22422016%59%
3ARI16-283.72717018.9%80%
4NE38-36.74427011.1%70%
5SF10-422.3147015.4%65%
6LAC20-17154436113.3%78%
8LA43-2014.23449111.8%62%
9PHI23-281.712704.5%77%
10NYG49-1732.3910173122.7%53%
11CAR33-107.23442010%72%
12WAS45-1017.24572115.6%80%
13SEA41-3516.54445110%90%
14PHI33-135.72537012.8%77%
15BUF10-3132610018.8%74%
16MIA20-2210.3221416.3%79%
17DET20-19175860121.6%78%
18WAS38-1016.26839120%79%

Production

Receptions54
Targets81
Receiving yards657
Carries5
Rushing yards35
Touchdowns8
Points per game10.82
Yards per target8.11
Catch rate66.67%
Yards per carry7

Role

Snap share73.31%
Target share14.3%
Air-yards share22.74%
WOPR0.373
RACR0.716

Efficiency

Average depth of target13.2
Yards after catch per reception2.3
Yards before catch per reception9.9
Total YAC125
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted103.8
Receiving EPA per game2.24
Rushing EPA per game0.11

Scoring position

Red-zone targets12
Red-zone target share10%
End-zone target share19.3%
Red-zone carry share2.7%
Expected receiving TDs3.47
Actual receiving TDs6
Receiving TD luck2.53
Expected rushing TDs0.15

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game40 of 51
Yards per target29 of 51
Target share50 of 51
Air-yards share40 of 51

Who else ate

The offense threw it 614 times. He took 13.39% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

CeeDee Lamb29.92%
Jake Ferguson16.86%
Brandin Cooks 13.39%
Tony Pollard11.07%
Michael Gallup9.42%
Jalen Tolbert5.95%

Blowouts against close games

10 of his 16 games were blowouts, 62.9% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 10.9 in those and 12.1 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2022 · HOU · 13 games

His best game was Week 18 against IND — 21.6 PPR on 6 targets and a 15.8% target share, in a game that finished 32-31. His worst was Week 3 against CHI at 4.2, on 7 targets, final score 20-23. Across 13 games he cleared 20 points 1 time and came in under 8 points 3 times. In the 8 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 11.2; in the 5 decided by more, 11.3. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 12.2 points per game. He scored 11.2, 8.4% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 3 against 1.97 expected, a gap of 1.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1IND20-2015.271282033.3%91%
2DEN9-169.441054027%87%
3CHI20-234.22722022.6%86%
4LAC24-3418.77757120%81%
5JAX13-664620025%78%
7LV20-388.64546012.5%89%
8TEN10-1711.34673020%81%
10NYG16-248.24737018.9%64%
11WAS10-23103670018.8%80%
12MIA15-3011.15559013.2%74%
16TEN19-1413.44934131%76%
17JAX3-317.94739016.7%77%
18IND32-3121.656106115.8%91%

Production

Receptions57
Targets93
Receiving yards699
Carries2
Rushing yards7
Touchdowns3
Points per game11.2
Yards per target7.52
Catch rate61.29%
Yards per carry3.5

Role

Snap share81.15%
Target share21.14%
Air-yards share29.22%
WOPR0.521
RACR0.767

Efficiency

Average depth of target10.7
Yards after catch per reception3.6
Yards before catch per reception8.7
Total YAC205
Broken tackles1
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted77.3
Receiving EPA per game0.39
Rushing EPA per game-0.04

Scoring position

Red-zone targets10
Red-zone target share15.2%
End-zone target share19.2%
Expected receiving TDs1.97
Actual receiving TDs3
Receiving TD luck1.03

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game36 of 51
Yards per target33 of 51
Target share34 of 51
Air-yards share24 of 51

Who else ate

The offense threw it 579 times. He took 16.94% of the targets. 0 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Brandin Cooks 16.94%
Chris Moore13.48%
Nico Collins12.02%
Jordan Akins9.84%
Rex Burkhead9.29%
Phillip Dorsett7.29%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Davis Mills128811.217.2721.8%
Kyle Allen1511.111.813.2%

Blowouts against close games

2 of his 13 games were blowouts, 11.3% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 8.25 in those and 11.16 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2021 · HOU · 16 games

His best game was Week 15 against JAX — 29.2 PPR on 10 targets and a 33.3% target share, in a game that finished 30-16. His worst was Week 11 against TEN at 3.8, on 3 targets, final score 22-13. Across 16 games he cleared 20 points 4 times and came in under 8 points 4 times. In the 4 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 9; in the 12 decided by more, 16.3. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 14.5 points per game. He scored 14.49, 0.2% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1JAX37-2118.257132021.9%78%
2CLE21-3122.891478150%92%
3CAR9-2420.7911112044%95%
4BUF0-409.75747035%87%
5NE22-255.33523018.5%85%
6IND3-3117.991389031%91%
7ARI5-317.15721022.6%95%
8LA22-3820.36683116.7%89%
9MIA9-1711.661456035%97%
11TEN22-133.82318013%83%
12NYJ14-2113.53545119.2%82%
13IND0-318.43638023.1%83%
14SEA13-3318.1811101022.9%81%
15JAX30-1629.2710102233.3%83%
17SF7-2319.671166136.7%79%
18TEN25-285.63426012.5%32%

Production

Receptions90
Targets134
Receiving yards1,037
Carries2
Rushing yards21
Touchdowns6
Points per game14.49
Yards per target7.74
Catch rate67.16%
Yards per carry10.5

Role

Snap share83.25%
Target share27.21%
Air-yards share38.01%
WOPR0.674
RACR0.793

Efficiency

Average depth of target10.5
Yards after catch per reception4
Yards before catch per reception7.6
Total YAC357
Broken tackles5
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted95.9
Receiving EPA per game1.53
Rushing EPA per game0.05

Scoring position

Red-zone targets10
Red-zone target share21.3%
End-zone target share17.6%
Expected receiving TDs2.04
Actual receiving TDs2
Receiving TD luck-0.04

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game19 of 48
Yards per target31 of 48
Target share9 of 48
Air-yards share5 of 48

Who else ate

The offense threw it 546 times. He took 25.62% of the targets. 0 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Brandin Cooks 25.62%
Nico Collins11.47%
David Johnson8.03%
Danny Amendola7.27%
Chris Conley7.07%
Pharaoh Brown6.5%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Davis Mills1210515.397.4928.86%
Tyrod Taylor42911.778.6622.28%

Blowouts against close games

5 of his 16 games were blowouts, 26.4% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 12.24 in those and 9 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

2020 · HOU · 15 games

His best game was Week 17 against TEN — 39.6 PPR on 16 targets and a 40% target share, in a game that finished 38-41. His worst was Week 4 against MIN at 0, on 3 targets, final score 23-31. Across 15 games he cleared 20 points 4 times and came in under 8 points 3 times. In the 10 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 15.7; in the 5 decided by more, 15. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 14.3 points per game. He scored 15.47, 8.1% above it. The engine classified the season as neutral. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 2 against 3.01 expected, a gap of -1.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1KC20-3442520016.1%53%
2BAL16-3314.55895023.5%90%
3PIT21-285.33523018.5%87%
4MIN23-31003009.7%94%
5JAX30-1430.1812161134.3%83%
6TEN36-4221.89968124.3%87%
7GB20-35137960023.7%81%
9JAX27-2517.33983131%91%
10CLE7-109.96839028.6%96%
11NE27-2012.54585013.5%93%
12DET41-2513.55585021.7%86%
13IND20-2611.55865021.6%83%
15IND20-2711.96759018.4%99%
16CIN31-3727.1710141130.3%96%
17TEN38-4139.61116166240%95%

Production

Receptions81
Targets119
Receiving yards1,150
Touchdowns6
Points per game15.47
Yards per target9.66
Catch rate68.07%

Role

Snap share87.6%
Target share23.68%
Air-yards share29.19%
WOPR0.56
RACR0.811

Efficiency

Average depth of target11.8
Yards after catch per reception4.3
Yards before catch per reception9.9
Total YAC350
Broken tackles3
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted101.9
Receiving EPA per game3.22

Scoring position

Red-zone targets11
Red-zone target share13.3%
End-zone target share11.4%
Expected receiving TDs3.01
Actual receiving TDs2
Receiving TD luck-1.01

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game15 of 51
Yards per target8 of 51
Target share20 of 51
Air-yards share25 of 51

Who else ate

The offense threw it 546 times. He took 22.71% of the targets. 0 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Brandin Cooks 22.71%
Will Fuller14.31%
Jordan Akins9.35%
Randall Cobb9.16%
David Johnson8.78%
Keke Coutee7.63%

Blowouts against close games

1 of his 15 games were blowouts, 6.3% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 14.5 in those and 15.69 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

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