Brandin

Cooks

Cooks ran about 30 percent of the team’s routes and was fourth in targets among Niners pass catchers. With Jordan Watkins and Demarcus Robinson in the fold, Cooks should remain on waiver wires ahead of Week 10.

Cooks was out-targeted and outplayed by both Jordan Watkins and Jacob Cowing. Cooks did run the most routes of any receiver on the team, but he didn’t command targets or look like a key piece of the receiving game. With Mike Evans likely back in Week 9, it’s hard to hold onto Cooks through the Week 8 bye in fantasy leagues.

None of these comes as a surprise. All of Bosa, Evans, and Samuel were already ruled out earlier in the week, and Sigle has missed multiple weeks with an ankle injury. Brandin Cooks and Christian Kirk are likely to lead the 49ers’ pass catchers against the Falcons this week, and both are worth adding in deeper formats in case either emerges as a legit weapon while Evans (Achilles) and Samuel (hamstring) are sidelined.

Watkins drew the start in place of the injured Deebo Samuel but was unable to take advantage of the opportunity, with 23 of Brock Purdy’s 29 targets going to the team’s top three options in Christian McCaffrey, Mike Evans, and George Kittle. Evans departed at the end of the second quarter with an aggravation of his Achilles injury, something that appears likely to cost the veteran a Week 7 game against the Falcons. That could leave Watkins in line for a second consecutive start, although the upside remains modest. Fantasy managers are likely best leaving both Watkins and veteran Brandin Cooks on the waiver wire, the latter of whom caught 1-of-2 targets for 13 yards against the Commanders.

With Deebo Samuel sustaining a serious hamstring injury in Week 5 against Seattle, Cooks stepped in and functioned as San Francisco’s No. 2 receiver behind Mike Evans. Cooks was targeted on 17 percent of his pass routes against the Seahawks and caught a touchdown on his only reception. Though Jacob Cowing could mix in with Samuel sidelined, Cooks should be in line for a few targets a game. The well-traveled veteran can be picked up in deeper fantasy formats this week.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Cooks is signing with the 49ers’ practice squad initially “to get up to speed for games.” Cooks, 32, posted a 24/279/0 receiving line in the regular season last year, before chipping in five catches for 78 yards in two playoff games. He is perhaps unlikely to be fantasy-relevant right away, but there is a real chance he could work his way into the 49ers’ wide receiver rotation, given their influx of injuries at the position.

This is probably a bad sign regarding WR Zay Flowers’ (hamstring) Week 2 availability, though the Ravens also placed rookie WR Ja’Kobi Lane (wrist) on short-term injured reserve this week. A signing seems likely.

Cooks is probably a fallback plan for the Bills if they don’t draft someone. Even if he’s signed, the pecking order in targets in Buffalo has radically changed with DJ Moore in town and fantasy managers shouldn’t be expecting more than a WR5 role for Cooks.

Cooks made two spectacular almost catches. On one of them, he caught the ball while twisting on the sideline, and his knee came down in bounds, but his wrist landed a fraction of a second earlier and landed out of bounds. The other play was far more controversial. It seemed like Cooks had hauled in a 44-yard pass to set the Bills up for a game-winning field goal in overtime, but the ball was stripped away by a Broncos defender. The Bills believed Cooks was down by contact before the ball was stripped loose, but the call was not reviewed, and the Broncos would then drive for a game-winning field goal of their own. The 32-year-old came on down the stretch for the Bills, showing that he still has enough deep speed to make big plays. He finished the season with 24 catches on 36 targets for 279 yards and no touchdowns in 15 games with the Bills and Saints. Some team will sign him in free agency and give him a role as a deep threat.

Cooks came down with a 36-yard bomb from Josh Allen late in the fourth quarter that eventually set up a go-ahead score. He finished the day second on the team in catches, targets, and yards. With Josh Palmer on IR, there was already plenty of volume up for grabs in the receiver room. The Bills then lost Gabe Davis to a knee injury late in this game. His status for the Divisional Round is up in the air. Cooks will likely operate as the team’s No. 2 receiver next week, putting him squarely on the DFS radar as a salary relief option.