After a week back at practice, Brandin Cooks is ready to go. The Cowboys will have the veteran wide receiver for their Thanksgiving Day game.
The team activated Cooks from IR on Wednesday, ESPN.com’s Todd Archer reports. Cooks will return to a team with a different outlook, as he has been out since Week 4. The Cowboys are now 4-7 and teetering on the brink of falling out of even fringe contention this season.
This is the second year of Cooks’ reworked Cowboys deal; he is due for free agency in 2025. Traded an NFL record-tying four times, Cooks has never hit free agency. The Saints (2017), Patriots (2018), Rams (2020) and Texans (2023) have traded him, with the returns lowering as the 2014 first-round pick has moved into the latter part of his career. Cooks, 31, can attempt to create a decent market with a nice finish.
The 11th-year pass catcher will not be working with Dak Prescott, as in every other game in his Cowboys career. Cooper Rush is taking the snaps, with Trey Lance set for situational work. Prescott is out for the season after undergoing hamstring surgery.
Following Brandon Marshall in tallying 1,000-yard seasons for four teams, Cooks did not run that number to five last season. He did serve as the Cowboys’ No. 2 wideout, accumulating 657 yards and eight touchdowns — his most since 2016 — in 16 games last season. Dallas has seen third-year player Jalen Tolbert become a regularly used contributor since Cooks’ injury. However, a sizable gulf still exists between CeeDee Lamb and everyone else in Dallas’ passing attack.