Houston Texans WR Cooks Active for Week 16

The Houston Texans will have their leading receiver back in the fold when they take the field against the Tennessee Titans later today. Wide receiver Brandin Cooks is officially active for the Week 16 AFC South showdown.

Texans get two starters back in WR Brandin Cooks and DB Steven Nelson who are active vs. Titans. https://t.co/NK93XOwKLl

— Deepi Sidhu (@DeepSlant) December 24, 2022

Cooks has missed the previous three games with a calf injury sustained in the Texans' Week 12 30-15 loss to the Miami Dolphins. He has totalled a team-leading 520 receiving yards in 10 starts this season.

Cooks' return this week comes as a bit of a surprise. At 1-12-1, the Texans are already eliminated from the playoffs and appear to have embraced the pursuit of the league's worst record and the 2023 NFL Draft's first overall pick. They've already begun shutting down many of their promising young players; wide receiver Nico Collins, running back Dameon Pierce, and cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. have all been placed on injured reserve in the past week. Cooks' availability this week is the rare Texans' move that may actually help them compete.

Cooks initially joined the Texans' via trade with the Los Angeles Rams. A veteran receiver with proven success in multiple systems, Cooks was a popular subject of trade speculation earlier this year, but the Texans elected to keep him. He'll likely draw more trade interest this offseason; he has topped 1000 yards receiving six times in his career on four separate teams.

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