Brandin Cooks: 'I couldn't be hungrier' after trade from Houston to Dallas

Brandin Cooks wanted to join a Super Bowl contender and he found it in the Dallas Cowboys this week. After winning just 11 games in the last three years with the Houston Texans, the new Cowboys wide receiver says he is as hungry as ever for wins.

“I couldn’t be hungrier,” Cooks told reporters after inking his new deal. “When you have those 3 years under your belt, that’s definitely fueling the fire and hunger to help my team win. I can’t wait. I truly can’t.”

Months ago, the Cowboys explored the possibility of adding Cooks ahead of their playoff run, which ended in the second round. Instead, Dallas picked up T.Y. Hilton. Hilton finished the year with 10 catches for 159 yards.

Cooks commented on the missed connection last season, saying “better late than never.”

“Better late than never,” Cooks said. “I’m extremely excited and blessed for the opportunity to come to a worldly organization like this. I can’t wait to get to work with the guys and go out and win some games.”

Instead of joining Dallas for the playoffs, Cooks finished the 2022 season with 699 receiving yards in 13 games played. He averaged 12.3 ypc and added three touchdowns.

The former Texan is going from catching passes from second-year QB Davis Mills in Houston to veteran gun-slinger Dak Prescott and he can’t wait.

“I’ve met (Prescott) before a handful of times and talked to him,” Cooks said. “He reached out as soon as he heard the news and I told him I can’t wait to get to work. He said he’s looking forward to having me as part of the group.”

Cooks, Stephon Gilmore reunite in Dallas

After news broke of Cooks’ trade from Houston to Dallas, fellow Cowboys newcomer Stephon Gilmore reacted on social media with a throwback photo of the duo. The photo shows the two former Patriots at a Boston Celtics game circa 2017.

“The Fambloski reunited,” Gilmore tweeted.

The Fambloski reunited @brandincooks 💯 ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/gq5JGAxyVs

— The Gilly Lock (@BumpNrunGilm0re) March 20, 2023

Gilmore signed his new deal with the Cowboys just five days before Cooks. Gilmore, at 32, is just slightly older than the new Dallas wideout. Both were first-round draft picks, going No. 10 overall in 2012 and No. 20 overall in 2014, respectively.

Cooks spent just one season with the Patriots while Gilmore was a staple from 2017-2020. The wideout posted 1,082 receiving yards in 2017, which was one of his six 1,000-yard seasons.