New Orleans Saints: Jared Cook may be your fantasy football savior

Drafts are heating up, and New Orleans Saints’ tight end Jared Cook is trending down. Your fantasy team should change that trend.

Jared Cook was a monster towards the end of the 2019 season, and starting on the right foot in 2020, Cook should be just as good for the New Orleans Saints, a team that should have one of the best offenses in the NFL.

Cook is currently getting picked in the mid-70s. According to Yahoo!, his average draft round is 8.2. That actually feels relatively acceptable for Cook, a tight end that really wasn’t targeted much in 2019 despite having several solid games.

Ending 2019 with 65 targets, Cook totaled just 43 receptions and nine touchdowns, the second-most among tight ends. For most point-per-reception leagues, seeing Cook get targeted a bit more would be nice.

Every look at Cook’s numbers should revolve around the back half of the season as that’s where he put on a show for the Saints, displaying just how much of a mismatch nightmare he can be. Over his last eight games of 2019, Cook averaged nearly five targets per game.

What’s more impressive is that Cook was notching 20 yards per receptions.

He also recorded seven touchdowns in those last eight games. He averaged 15.4 points per game in PPR leagues. Down the stretch, that’s impressive, and for an eighth-round pick, it’s something every manager must jump on.

If Cook can pick up right where he left off, expect him to be a top-five tight end in terms of fantasy value, and he could help save your team if you believe in the 6-foot-5 33-year-old.

He’ll be a premier red-zone target for one of the most accurate quarterbacks in the league. He has all the upside of a fantasy stud, although he may not post numbers at the tight end spot like George Kittle or Travis Kelce.

For the value of pick, Cook could deliver some dominant performances.