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Brandin Cooks, Mark Ingram Fantasy Outlook Ahead of Drew Brees' Return

Published by Bleacher Report on Sat, 03 Oct 2015


After one week of causing fantasy owners to scramble for another starting quarterback, Drew Brees will be back under center for the New Orleans Saints in Week 4.Saints head coach Sean Payton announced the "plan" is for his star quarterback to be back Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys, per the team's official Twitter account. Brees took most of the snaps at practice Wednesday, which was a positive sign after he didn't throw last week.Brees has not looked like the same player through two games, racking up 28 points in standard-scoring leagues, per ESPN.com. Last year, using the same stats, Brees averaged 18.13 fantasy points per game.The good news is that Brees was able to pinpoint a physical problem and take the necessary time off to let it heal. He will be coming back to take on a Dallas defense that has a total of minus-two fantasy points in games against teams that aren't the Philadelphia Eagles this season.If there is a game for Brees and the Saints to get back on track, it will come Sunday. Two players who will be happy to see the former Super Bowl MVP back are wide receiver Brandin Cooks and running back Mark Ingram, who need to get out of their early-season slumps if this team is going to make any noise in the NFC South.The Cowboys allowed 65 points and forced no turnovers with just two sacks in games against the Atlanta Falcons and New York Giants.Brees' Impact on CooksThe Saints drafted Cooks in the first round two years ago because of his big-play potential. Unfortunately, because of injuries and natural learning curves, the former Oregon State star is averaging just 10.7 yards per reception through his first 13 career games.Some, like Neil Greenberg of theWashington Post, don't want anything to do with Cooks because the Saints don't look his way in the red zone:The good news is with Luke McCown replacing Drew Brees under center, Cookshad a team-high seven catchesagainst five different defenders in primary coverage for 79 yards Sunday against the Panthers.The bad news is his scoringslump will linger as long as he is overlooked in the red zone.Through three weeks of the season, Cook has been targeted once inside the 20-yard line, with Willie Snead getting the majority of the passes (three).Touchdowns have been a problem for Cooks, as he scored just three as a rookie and has yet to find the end zone in 2015.However, there are reasons to be optimistic that Cooks will turn things around in Week 4. The Cowboys have struggled against No. 1 receivers this season:Expecting Cooks to duplicate Julio Jones' performance would be unrealistic, because Atlanta's star wideout is operating at a different level than anyone else right now.However, it would be fair to expect Cooks to put up a game like the one Jordan Matthews had. He's a different kind of receiver, but using that speed to get behind Dallas' defense will help open up those big plays Brees loves to attempt.Plus, Cooks remains the favorite target for New Orleans quarterbacks. He leads the team with 23 targets and is tied for the team lead with 16 receptions.Cooks should be starting in points-per-reception leagues, but he has such a good matchup this weekend that he may be worthy of a No. 2 receiver or flex spot in standard-scoring leagues.Brees' Impact on IngramInterestingly, Ingram is tied with Cooks in receptions. He's not running as well as he did in 2014, but he is just 13 catches away from tying the career-high 29 he had last season.That makes sense, given the way New Orleans' offense has operated with Brees. Pierre Thomas was never the most dynamic runner, but his value came because Brees trusted him as a pass-catcher out of the backfield.Just as Cooks looks like a strong fantasy option against a Dallas defense that has struggled against wide receivers lately, the Cowboys made Devonta Freeman look like a superstar last week, when he went off for 141 yards and three touchdowns.Atlanta's running back also had five receptions for 52 yards in that game, so everything is set up for Ingram to have his best fantasy game of the season.However, don't expect a big rushing total out of Ingram. The former Alabama star has failed to break the 60-yard barrier since a Week 13 win over Pittsburgh (122 yards) last year.The Saints aren't a high-volume rushing team, as Brees has thrown the ball at least 650 times in each of the last five seasons. Payton didn't alter the game plan last week, with Luke McCown throwing 38 passes against Carolina.Like Cooks, Ingram's best value to fantasy owners is in PPR leagues. He's been targeted 17 times in three games, catching at least five passes in two games.If those big plays to Cooks aren't available, Ingram will be waiting in the flats as Brees' checkdown option. He's not an elite runner, but the combination of rushing and receiving yards should end up in triple digits by the time Sunday's game comes to an end.
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