National Football League

Should the Dallas Cowboys have traded for Brandin Cooks?

Updated Nov. 2, 2022 4:16 p.m. ET

The NFL trade deadline has come and gone, and Dallas Cowboys fans watched as their team stood pat Tuesday ahead of the 4 p.m. ET cutoff.

After losing both Amari Cooper and Cedrick Wilson this past offseason, Dallas has yet to find ample replacements for the lost production.

There was a belief among the fan base that the Cowboys could replace that production by making a move for Houston Texans wide receiver Brandin Cooks, who has recorded four straight 1,000-yard seasons. The Cowboys' front office shared that same thought process, according to a number of sources, as Dallas' brass reportedly remained in discussions with Houston on a Cooks deal until the deadline's final minutes. In the end, the two sides couldn't come to an agreement.

Because of that, "Undisputed" cohost Shannon Sharpe thinks the Cowboys missed out on a home run acquisition.

"I thought Jerry should've closed the deal, but I knew he wouldn't," Sharpe said Wednesday on the show. "You knew since free agency that the trade deadline was going to happen on Nov. 1 at 4 p.m. … Why did you wait to the umpteenth hour to [say] ‘what’s the draft compensation?'

"Jerry [could've] just picked up the phone, talked to the GM, and said ‘hey, how can we get this deal done?’ [People are saying] 'well James Washington might be coming back.' James Washington has 11 TD in 60 games with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He averages 27 yards a game. Michael Gallup is coming off a serious knee injury, he has 135 yards with one TD. Dalton Schultz has 203 yards, no TDs. Noah Brown – your second-leading receiver – has 339 yards, one TD. The Cowboys average 191 yards passing per game. Brandin Cooks, since he got into the league in 2014, has six 1,000-yard receiving seasons. I don't get it. He's a bona fide deep threat."

Sharpe also argued that having Cooks around would provide CeeDee Lamb with more room to roam.

"So now, CeeDee can really work the intermediate, because he ain't getting deep," he declared. "Unless he goes in the water, that's the only time he's getting deep. How many times have you seen him run a go-route that's not in "Hard Knocks?" For the teams that were contenders … this was the most active trade deadline that I've seen. I believe they should've made a deal."

Sharpe's cohost Skip Bayless was unmoved by the missed trade.

"I did not lose one second of sleep last night … because I'm not going to miss Brandin Cooks, and I'm not going to let anybody that I know in Cowboy Nation conclude that our season got lost at the trade deadline," Bayless said. "If you add somebody at the trade deadline – anybody of impact and value – it does send a strong message to the locker room, ‘we are here to go for it.’ No message got sent.

"The Cowboys trade for Jonathan Hankins was just what the doctor ordered at that moment. … Brandin Cooks is going on 30 years of age. Pro Football Focus ranks him the 61st-best receiver in pro football. 61st? Well CeeDee is all the way up at 14th, and that's where he belongs. And by the way, on Sunday, I saw a reconnection and rebirth of Dak to CeeDee. … Dak started throwing it to 88 the way you should go ahead and force balls to him. … I like the look of Dak saying ‘you know what? I’m going to throw it to that guy, because that guy is really good.' … All of a sudden, It looked like a top-five connection. … Noah Brown is ranked the 45th-best receiver. I'm good with Noah Brown, and by the way, Michael Gallup has moved up to 66th. Cooks is 61st."

Lamb currently has 42 receptions for 556 yards (13.2 yards per reception) and three TD. Cooks, meanwhile, has hauled in 32 catches for Houston, totaling 354 yards (11.1 YPR) and a lone TD.