I was not a fan of trading up in this deep draft, but to trade up and get the perfect fit in our offense in Brandon Cooks was a master stroke. If you want to get excited about this kid, read this article: http://grantland.com/features/brandin-cooks-nfl-draft-oregon-state-wide-receiver/ He has that "it" factor.
Pretty happy with the selection and don't mind losing the 3rd round pick to get him. He's a gamebreaker and that's what the first round is for: adding special talent to the roster. He's going to make an impact pretty quickly, barring injury. At the very least, he's going to be an exciting guy to watch returning kicks and punts.
Good point about being a return man. Not about you guys, but I'm fucking tired of having to go 80 yards every time our offense has the ball. We need help from special teams and from our defense getting turnovers (see Jairus Byrd). We should see an immediate improvement in the field position area in the coming seasons. Injury concerns with this kid? Absolutely none based on prior history. Another huge plus. He's got Steve Smith's size and strength to go with Percy Harvin's speed and quickness. So yeah, we should be pretty damn excited.
The comparison I keep hearing is Steve Smith. He exceeds Harvin in that (at least in college) he's been very durable considering his size. Really love this pick.
Yep, I have him as a blend of Steve Smith and Percy Harvin. Take the best of both. High points and fights for the ball, adjusts to an inaccurate ball, runs great routes (Steve Smith). Agility, change of direction, pure straight line speed, ala Percy Harvin. He runs routes probably as well as Wes Welker. So throw that into the mix. He is NFL ready. He will make an impact from jump.
I was looking at some draft stats last night and the difference between drafting a successful nfl player in the 1st round vs. the 2nd round was 4%. For example, a first rounder is considered a success 54% of the time and a second rounder 50% of the time over the last decade or so. The stats clearly suggest that you shouldn't trade up the vast majority of the time. The Saints history of trading up has also not been kind. In fact the Saints have done better than average turning mid to late round choices and free agents into starters. While Cooks was the best consensus WR left in a position of need I still don't like the pick because it costs us a 3rd rounder. Mickey Loomis and Sean Payton have traded up fairly often in the past, but they are going against the odds and their forte' of finding gems in the rough.
Thanks for the video Izzy. He has good hands, speed, and he's solid after the catch. I enjoyed watching those WR screens over the middle. I can only imagine what Sean Payton was thinking while watching his film.
@old school I'm certainly not going to dispute statistics, but I'll say this. Its not just that WR was a position of need. A speed receiver was a position of dire need. Stillls can get deep on guile, but he's not scary fast, while Morgan is damaged and also unpolished. Cooks was the fastest guy in the draft, not just the fastest available. He's faster than Watkins, OBJ or Lee, a legit 4.3 guy that defenses will have to respect. The receiver corps is depleted; Moore is gone, Meachem is a situational target at best, and there's real concern that Colston is on the decline. Cooks also fills a big need as a return man with the loss of Sproles. Moreover, did you read the Grantland article linked in the OP? This guy has an insane work ethic! When Drew Brees sees the effort to learn and perfect his tools that Cooks brings, its going to be serious man-crush time. I predict BC will very quickly become DB's favorite target. Now you make the point that the Saints have been very good at finding "gems in the rough", and you are correct. (Second round....don't be surprised if the Saints grab Pierre Desir, a cornerback from Linwood(?) University) But, that brings 3 points to mind.... a. The Saints' willingness to grab small college talent just proves they aren't bound by conventional wisdom, such as "trading up in the first round rarely works." 2. The ability to identify small college talent doesn't mean they should ignore talent that comes from a big school, and d. Is there a small college guy out there with Cooks' package? If there was, the Saints would know about him. Finally, the loss of the third round pick is unfortunate. And if this were a 5-11 team (not the coach-is-suspended 5-11 of 2 years ago, but legitimately bad), it would be a big concern. Then you'd need to stockpile picks for the inevitable rebuild. But the Saints are very close to being a Super Bowl contender, perhaps 2-3 players away. You'd be hard-pressed to argue that Cooks doesn't fill in one of those missing elements. That's worth giving up a draft pick. Oh, and welcome to TF.
Agree 100 %. Kid has moxy, determination, fight to exceed at the next level. He isn't shy. P&GWheelz, I can't wait to get this guy out in space ala Darren Sproles.
