It's been nearly a decade since Brandin Cooks was last a member of the New Orleans Saints, at that point a young and fiery WR making a name for himself in the NFL.
Cooks would tell you he still has that fire, but he's learned a lot since being traded away from the Saints ahead of the 2017 season. That time has included eight seasons split between four teams, two Super Bowl trips and a lot of leadership qualities learned, as he explained this week on SportsTalk.
“I truly take pride in [being a team leader]," Cooks told WWL Radio. "I really do, because I know at the end of the day it’s not all about me. Where I’m trying to get and where we’re trying to get as a team, we all need each other and I’ve always prided myself on that over the years and I really look forward to it."
Listen to the full, exclusive interview with Brandin Cooks in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.
The Saints were certainly in need of a veteran presence in their WR room led by a pair of exciting young stars in Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed, both entering their fourth NFL seasons and coming off significant injuries. The room also features a pair of second-year pros in last year's 5th round pick Bub Means, UDFAs Mason Tipton and Kevin Austin, and veterans Cedrick Wilson and Dante Pettis.
"All the guys already got a great head on their shoulders, right, and hopefully I can add some tools here and there, on and off the field," Cooks continued. "We collaborate together and do some great things, so I think it’s gonna be fun. I can’t wait to get to work."
Related
The Cooks signing was one of the bigger pieces of a largely low-key free agency for the Saints, which also saw the team ink safety Justin Reid on a 3-year, $31 million deal, and ink DE Chase Young and TE Juwan Johnson to lucrative, 3-year extensions.
━━
MORE FROM BRANDIN COOKS
On decision to come back to New Orleans
“To sign a contract coming back it’s really just a full-circle moment, right? The journey has been awesome. I’ve been blessed to be able to leave and go have a lot of success and the team has had a lot of success since I’ve been gone, as well. So I think from that aspect, just coming back, being home … being back to where it all started, and I really believe in what Kellen is all about and the staff that he built, the strength and performance staff, everything. I think they have something good going and some great players, absolutely.”
━━
Thoughts on Kellen Moore as head coach
“I’m very impressed from the standpoint of just his approach to the game and how he uses everyone and gets everyone involved. ... It’s gonna be great just getting to work and letting everything kind of take care of itself, but I think, you know, he’s been a part of great offenses and he’s continued to show that year in and year out, and I think he’s ready for that role of being a head coach.”
━━
On QB Derek Carr
“I’ve spoken with him. We kind of keep in touch even before this, but my thoughts of him as a player, he can make any throw. He’s obviously been playing in this league for a long time and doing it at a high level. You know, hopefully at the end of the day it’s all about coming here, staying healthy, and that’s for all of us, and I think he’s having a heck of an offseason right now, getting his body right, getting his mind right and I look forward to getting to work with him. At the end of the day, we can say all this, but it’s all about the work, right, and he knows I’m gonna work, I know he’s gonna work and I’m gonna push him, and vice versa, so I look forward to that … at OTAs.”