2014 NFL Mock Draft: Brandin Cooks chosen by the New York Jets

Brandin Cooks, WR, Oregon State

Sorry, BGN. I know most of you, myself included, view Brandin Cooks as a potential DeSean Jackson consolation prize at 22. Unfortunately, considering they missed out on him in FA, the Jets likely feel the same way at 18. Plus I wanted to hook my boy Mike Vick up with at least one able bodied and useful receiver other than Greg Salas -- sorry Jeremy Kerley, Stephen Hill, David Nelson, and Santonio Holmes’ ghost. Cooks has it all, except the elite Megatron-esque size (he is of a diminutive stature at 5’10, pretty much my only knock against the kid).

Cooks has amazing top end speed, very good hands (rather big for his size), elite agility, a polished route tree, the ability to go up and high-point a ball, the ability to concentrate on the ball and only the ball and make those tough catches in traffic, and the electrifying ability to make people miss once the ball is securely in his hands. Perhaps what impressed me most about Cooks though is his innate field vision and play-making ability. Oregon State loved to use Cooks in the screen game, because he is very adept at letting his blocks set up and then finding a hole to dart through. For the same reason, they also gave him the ball on end-arounds a decent amount.

It’s often the case that the more tape you watch on a prospect, the more his weaknesses start to stand out. With Brandin Cooks however, it seemed the more I watched the kid play, the more and more impressed I became. This kid is good. I mean really good. I’m not going to throw any of his highlights in this write-up because I can’t even select which plays I was most impressed by. If you have some free time, watch any and all game tape you can find on Cooks though. Or don't, as you'll likely have your heart broken come draft day.

There are still some good defensive prospects available here, and taking into account Dee Milliner didn't exactly live up to his expectations last season, Antonio "ten kids" Cromartie left for Arizona, and the fact that Revis' departure left a CB vacuum of sorts, I seriously considered snagging a CB like Fuller, Dennard or Roby to strengthen their DB corps. Rex Ryan loves him some defense and Idzik typically has no clue what’s going on, so it’s still a possibility that they go defense here despite needing major help on offense.

However, if they weren't the J-E-S-T, JEST JEST JEST and if I didn't know better by now, I’d be shocked if Cooks was on the board and they passed on him. They nearly made the playoffs last year and their offense was terrible. I mean putrid; puke-worthy, even. Like bad enough that Mr. Buttfumble couldn't watch (no offense Mark, it’s going to be hard getting used to not making jokes at your expense). In more objective terms, they ranked 28th in yds per game, 29th in points per game, and an abysmal 31st in passing yards per game, finishing ahead of only the Schiano/Glennon-lead Bucs.

The Jets improved their run game in FA with the addition of CJ1.077K, and they take a big step towards improving the passing game with Cooks.

I could see an argument being made for an offensive lineman, as it is definitely a position of need for them, but the skill positions are just so much sexier, and more seriously the top tier OL prospects were gone by the time I picked. Geno showed some signs of life occasionally as a rookie, at least enough to warrant not reaching for a first round QB like Derek Carr this year. With the addition of Revis and Browner to the juggernaut of the AFC East, the Jets probably need some type of passing threat if they want to compete or at least have positive passing yardage against them. At pick 18, Cooks is exactly the aerial threat they’re looking for.

TL;DR – I know he would be great on the Eagles but the Jets want him too OK so stop being selfish

I’ll be around in the comments section to elaborate on my thought process if anything was unclear to you, or if you just want to flame me for ruining the mock draft in your signature.

2014 BGN Mock Draft Order

1 Houston Texans (Imp) - Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville - [Explanation]
2 St. Louis Rams (starship 007) - Sammy Watkins, WR, Clemson - [Explanation]
3 Jacksonville Jaguars (sports00fan00) - Jadeveon Clowney, DE, SC - [Explanation]
4 Cleveland Browns (InHinkieWeTrust) - Johnny Manziel, QB, TAMU - [Explanation]
5 Oakland Raiders (SleepingDuck) - Khalil Mack, OLB, Buffalo - [Explanation]
6 Atlanta Falcons (jimmyrustler) - Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn - [Explanation]
7 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (AnthroEagle) - Blake Bortles, QB, UCF - [Explanation]
8 Minnesota Vikings (pot) - Anthony Barr, OLB, UCLA - [Explanation]
9 Buffalo Bills (wow4444) - Jake Matthews, OT, TAMU - [Explanation]
10 Detroit Lions (kamjam) - Mike Evans, WR, TAMU - [Explanation]
11 Tennessee Titans (NowWhat?) - Justin Gilbert, CB, OK State - [Explanation]
12 New York Giants (Anthony DiBona) - Eric Ebron, TE, UNC - [Explanation]
13 St. Louis Rams (ILL Eagle) - Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, S, Alabama - [Explanation]
14 Chicago Bears (JerkyBoy) - Calvin Pryor, S, Louisville - [Explanation]
15 Pittsburgh Steelers (KJ Brophy) - Taylor Lewan, OT, Michigan - [Explanation]
16 Dallas Cowboys (Patrick Wall) - C.J. Mosley, LB, Alabama - [Explanation]
17 Baltimore Ravens (rohan915) - Zack Martin, OT, ND - [Explanation]
18 New York Jets (del.champion) - Brandin Cooks, WR, Oregon State - [Explanation]
19 Miami Dolphins (HD) -
20 Arizona Cardinals (NCeagle) -
21 Green Bay Packers (ablesser88) -
22 Philadelphia Eagles (jhn) -
23 Kansas City Chiefs (PeaceVT) -
24 Cincinnati Bengals (deg0ey) -
25 San Diego Chargers (StoneColeKiller58) -
26 Cleveland Browns (P_Roach17) -
27 New Orleans Saints (bebin) -
28 Carolina Panthers (MikeKafka) -
29 New England Patriots (Amateur_Hour) -
30 San Francisco 49ers (AndyMcNabb) -
31 Denver Broncos (dceagles) -
32 Seattle Seahawks (eagles0132) -