For many, it came as quite a shock when the New England Patriots shipped wide receiver Brandin Cooks to Southern California in a trade with the Los Angeles Rams. However, unlike some players who find out about these things on social media, Cooks had already been informed about it and was not caught unawares.
For this, and other reasons, he expressed nothing but “respect” toward his old head coach, speaking to media on Thursday.
Brandin Cooks explains how Bill Belichick broke the news of his trade to Los Angeles and what lessons learned in New England he will bring with him to the West Coast @usatodaynfl @GregABedard @CVRamsClub pic.twitter.com/PD0zfUeSRk
— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) April 5, 2018
“They gave me a call about an hour before it happened,” Cooks said, via Joe Curley of Ventura County Star. “I have a ton of respect for him (Belichick) and we have a ton of respect for each other. You hear the horror stories of guys finding out on Twitter, but at the end of the day, you know the way that they run things over there and the respect that we have for each other, he gave me a call and gave me a heads up. And at the end of the day, all you can do is respect that and have to understand it’s a business.”
Cooks spent one year in New England after being traded from New Orleans for a first-round pick, which happens to be what the Patriots got in return this time around, too. During his lone campaign with the Pats, Cooks caught 65 passes for 1,082 yards and seven touchdowns.
Now that he’s with Los Angeles, Cooks will likely be getting a nice payday, as it’s been reported he’ll land a long-term deal before the upcoming season begins.