Patriots deal WR Cooks to Rams for first-round pick

The Patriots traded wide receiver Brandin Cooks and a fourth-round pick to the Rams for the 23rd overall pick in the first round and a sixth-round selection.

In his one season with New England, the 24-year-old Cooks finished with 65 catches for 1,082 yards and seven touchdowns. In his four years in the league, he has 280 regular-season receptions, 3,943 yards and 27 touchdowns.

Cooks had an eventful year. There were times where he appeared to be positively dominant -- he had two games where he finished with 100-plus receiving yards (131 vs. the Texans, 149 vs. the Raiders). He had 15 catches of 25 yards or more, tied for third in the league in 2017 and second in franchise history. In addition, Cooks’ seven catches of 40-plus yards were tied for second in the league with Pittsburgh’s Antonio Brown.

But there were times where he disappeared off the radar screen — he also had six games where he didn’t crack 40 receiving yards. Part of that was likely due to the fact that the Patriots are a heavy gameplan-specific team, but there was also an occasional belief that he wasn’t on the same page as the quarterback.

In the end, Cooks turned out to be a one-year rental for the Patriots. Now, the rest of his deal -- and his financial future -- is on the Rams. The truth of the matter is that given the sort of deals handed out to free-agent wide receivers over the last month, Cooks could feasibly ask for something in the range of $12 million to $15 million annually next offseason if his 2018 totals were in the same ballpark as they were this past year. The Patriots weren’t likely to pay that, so the thinking is that they got out a year too early, and got something in return as opposed to a year too late without anything.

As for New England, it now has two first-round selections -- No. 23 and 31 overall. You never know, because Bill Belichick loves his draft-weekend deals, but if the Patriots stick, this will also mark the first time since 2011 they have five picks in the top 100. Here's a complete list of where New England stands when it comes to draft picks:

First round (No. 23)
First round (No. 31)
Second round (No. 43)
Second round (No. 63)
Third round (No. 95)
Sixth round (No. 198)
Sixth round (No. 210)
Seventh round (No. 219)

While things can inevitably change at the drop of a hat, here's a look at the Patriots' wide receiver depth chart (among those with NFL experience): Julian Edelman, Malcolm Mitchell, Chris Hogan, Phillip Dorsett, Kenny Britt and Cordarrelle Patterson. The big winners in the short term appear to be speedsters Dorsett and Patterson, two receivers who have a similar skill set to Cooks. However, as we all know, the Patriots' personnel situation is pretty dynamic at this time of year, so the roster could look an awful lot different by the time camp opens in July.

Two other notes: One, ESPN's Adam Schefter says that the Patriots won't be trading Rob Gronkowski. And two, Jason LaCanfora of CBS Sports says this move is not a precursor to New England going after Odell Beckham, Jr.