Bill O'Brien: Texans 'Feel Really Good' About Brandin Cooks Despite Concussions

Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien has presented his fanbase with quite a head-scratching offseason.

After his top wideout, DeAndre Hopkins, requested a raise in 2020, the team traded him to the Arizona Cardinals and then acquired receiver Brandin Cooks from the Los Angeles Rams despite a history of health concerns. 

O'Brien defended the Cooks deal on a conference call Thursday. 

"I've been asked about concussions," O'Brien said via ESPN's Sarah Barshop. "Yes, he's had concussions, but he's only missed two games since 2015. All that was taken into account when we worked with [Rams coach] Sean McVay on the trade."

The Texans gave up their second-round pick in 2020, the 57th overall, to grab Cooks and a fourth-round pick in 2022 in a move that, on its face, appeared to be a significant downgrade. 

"I think that Brandin brings a lot to the table," O'Brien said. "He's a tremendous route-runner. He's got great speed. Really good deep-ball player. If you look at his yards per catch over the years, it's really high. You're talking about in the 14-15 range."

O'Brien, who formerly was named Houston's general manager in January after being the de facto one in 2019, said part of the reason the team felt it needed to move Hopkins was because he had asked for a raise on his current contract. Cooks, 26, carries a higher cap hit over the next three seasons than the 27-year-old Hopkins. And that's before considering Cooks' health concerns. 

Cooks suffered head injuries in 2018 and 2019—getting knocked out of the Super Bowl during the former and missing two additional games during the latter. 

The No. 20 overall pick in the 2014 draft, Cooks is joining his fourth NFL team after previous stints in New England and New Orleans. His usage with each club is strikingly similar. In every offense he's been in, Cooks has served as a speedy downfield threat on the outside who can burn cornerbacks off the line of scrimmage. 

Yet the Oregon State product noticeably trended downward in 2019, failing to surpass 1,000 receiving yards for the first time since 2015, catching just 583 yards and a career-low two touchdowns in 14 games as the Los Angeles Rams had issues all across its offense last season.

O'Brien has been critiqued for spending too much to bring Cooks to Houston after trading Hopkins. The seventh-year head coach is hoping fans will stick with him for the long term as he tries to prove the deals were worth it. 

"Let the whole thing play out, whether it's [the Hopkins] trade or anything else that we've done," O'Brien said. "I would say let's review it a year from now, two years from now, three years from now. Let's let it all play out."