One of the causes for concern this free agency for the Dallas Cowboys is the depth at receiver, in part because of free agent names like Brandin Cooks.
Cooks enters free agency for the first time in his 11-year career this offseason, after spending time with the New Orleans Saints, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams and Houston Texans before the Cowboys.
"I'm expecting a good free agency ..." Cooks said to reporter Josina Anderson. "but I'm also open to returning to Dallas."
Cooks has received little publicity about his return to Dallas this offseason - especially amidst all the receiver free agency buzz across the NFL.
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He continued by acknowledging the difficulty he had fitting in to the Cowboys system last season.
"I would love to play with the Cowboys, (but) at the same time they would have to use me right. I don't think they fully used me to my strengths," Cooks said.
The former first round pick in 2014 only registering 259 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns with Dallas last season.
While Cooks maintains optimism in possibly returning for a third season with the Cowboys, he understands where the organization is coming from in this process.
"... It's just one of those things where they have to focus on what they have to get done first, too." he said.
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On the probability of his return to the Cowboys, Cooks pointed to his relationships and his drive to succeed at this stage in his career.
"I have a good relationship with Dak [Prescott], the Jones family and CeeDee [Lamb]," he said.
"At the end of the day I'm just trying to win. I am fully healthy and have nothing to hide."
Cooks, 31, played in a career-low 10 games in 2024. He missed time with a knee injury, but was able to return toward the end of last season.
Whether the Cowboys have Cooks in their winning plans remains to be seen, but this statement may spark conversations about Cooks future in Dallas.
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This story was originally published March 8, 2025 at 3:32 PM.