Brandin Cooks start or sit: Week 1 fantasy football advice

Brandin Cooks had a pretty good season with the Houston Texans last year. He caught 81 passes for 1,150 yards and six touchdowns. The offseason departure of Will Fuller made Cooks the team’s No. 1 receiver too. Unfortunately, changes at quarterback and roster barren of talent are going to make things rough for Cooks this season. But he does still have some fantasy value.

Fantasy Football analysis: Texans WR Brandin Cooks

The sorry state of the Texans aside, being the No. 1 receiver on a team that’s going to be playing from behind most of the season isn’t a bad deal for fantasy purposes at least. That will make it easier for some teams to shut him down, making Cooks a volatile play from week to week. However, he draws a favorable matchup this week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Only two teams gave up more passing yards last season than the Jaguars, and the 23 receiving touchdowns allowed rank near the bottom as well.

Fantasy Start/Sit Recommendation

Cooks is a decent start this week as a WR3 or Flex. You can get him in DraftKings leagues for $5,300 this week too, making him a decent play in DFS formats.