Dallas Cowboys
Former Bills Receiver With Nearly 10,000 Career Yards Signs With 49ers 1
Brandin Cooks has spent more than a decade carving out a place in the NFL as a reliable and explosive wide receiver. His path has taken him through several stops, each adding another layer in his career.
As the 2026 season unfolds, a new opportunity has emerged that continues the next phase of his professional journey. He has now gotten a call from the San Francisco 49ers which will make the franchise his seventh team of his career.
49ers sign wide receiver Brandin Cooks
The San Francisco 49ers signed veteran wide receiver Brandin Cooks to their practice squad on September 22, 2026, according to reports from Adam Schefter and other sources. The addition comes as the team deals with multiple injuries in the receiving corps early in the season.
Ricky Pearsall is out for the year after knee surgery, Christian Kirk and De’Zhaun Stribling are on injured reserve, and Demarcus Robinson is sidelined with a high-ankle injury.
Dallas Cowboys, Brandin Cooks, Buffalo BillsDallas Cowboys, Brandin Cooks, Buffalo Bills
Dec 30, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Brandin Cooks (3) is tackled by Detroit Lions running back Jermar Jefferson (39) in the second half at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
Through the end of the 2025 season, Cooks has appeared in 173 games with 149 starts. His career totals stand at 734 receptions for 9,811 yards and 60 touchdowns. He sits just 189 yards short of the 10,000-yard milestone and has recorded six 1,000-yard seasons. He is one of the few players in NFL history to post 1,000 receiving yards with four different teams and the first to achieve that mark in three consecutive seasons across three different franchises.
Insider Adam Schefter reported the news on X, writing: “Source: free-agent WR Brandin Cooks is signing with the 49ers practice squad, initially to get up to speed for games. It is year 13 for the former first-round pick from Oregon State who now is 189 yards short of 10,000 receiving yards for his NFL career.”
This move makes the 49ers Cooks’ seventh NFL franchise. He began his career with the New Orleans Saints from 2014 to 2016, played for the New England Patriots in 2017, joined the Los Angeles Rams from 2018 to 2019, spent three seasons with the Houston Texans from 2020 to 2022, and was with the Dallas Cowboys from 2023 to 2024.
In 2025 he returned to the Saints before finishing the year with the Buffalo Bills. San Francisco now becomes the latest stop in a well-traveled career.
Brandin Cooks’ had a mellow 2025 season
Brandin Cooks experienced one of the quieter regular seasons of his 12-year NFL career in 2025. He finished with 24 receptions for 279 yards and no touchdowns across 15 games, averaging 11.6 yards per catch. The year was split between two teams after a midseason change.
Cooks began the season back with the New Orleans Saints, the franchise that drafted him in 2014. He signed a two-year contract in the offseason but struggled to find consistent production in an offense that featured younger receivers. In 10 games (three starts), he recorded 19 receptions for 165 yards, averaging just 8.7 yards per catch.
Shortly after leaving New Orleans Saints, Cooks signed with the Buffalo Bills. In five regular-season appearances (two starts), he caught five passes for 114 yards, posting a much stronger average of 22.8 yards per reception. His most notable performance came in Week 17 against the Philadelphia Eagles, when he hauled in four catches for 101 yards, including a 50-yard reception.
Cooks remained with Buffalo into the playoffs and appeared in both of their games. He recorded five receptions for 78 yards. In the Wild Card round against the Jacksonville Jaguars, he had three catches for 58 yards. In the Divisional Round loss to the Denver Broncos, he managed two catches for 20 yards and was involved in a controversial late play that was ruled an interception after review.
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