Houston Texans rumors: Nothing less than a 2nd for Cooks, Browns interested

The Houston Texans’ next big trade could involve shipping off Brandin Cooks. 

The 2022 NFL offseason has seen some of the wildest tradings in the history of the league. First, the Houston Texans made their mark on it by trading Deshaun Watson to the Cleveland Browns. The next domino that could potentially fall and be traded is Houston’s star wide receiver, Brandin Cooks.

There were rumors that Cooks, Watson, and LT Laremy Tunsil could all be traded; only Watson has been traded while Tunsil agreed to a restructured contract. This leaves the spotlight on Cooks as teams rush to get weapons before the draft.

Mike Fisher of the Cowboys’ site on SI.com writes that NFL sources have been talking and that Houston will reportedly not budge if offered a third-round pick. However, they may just bite if given a second-round pick.

Houston Texans can be confident in demanding a second-round or higher pick for Cooks.

Before the “Cooks isn’t worth that much!” and other related comments start flooding in, think about what Cooks has done in his career. He’s posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in Houston of all places and has the 10th-most yards receiving in the last two seasons. Cooks was only 300 yards behind Tyreek Hill, who went for a first-round pick in a trade with the Miami Dolphins.

Caserio didn’t budge on Watson, and he shouldn’t budge here either. Getting a second would be good, but potentially a first-round pick would be even sweeter. The chances of a first are low, but there’s a reason you start high and then go low when fielding offers.

What’s even more interesting is that Watson’s former teammate appears to want him in Cleveland. An article published by our sister site DawgPoundDaily details how the Browns have called about Cooks’ availability.

Cleveland got Amari Cooper for a lot less, but that was Dallas being desperate to get rid of Cooper’s cap hit. So don’t expect Caserio to get desperate like the Cowboys did.