New Orleans Saints fans have been hoping for veteran tight end Jared Cook to have his breakout game, and he’s delivering it at the best time. The Saints’ big free agent signing of the offseason caught both of his team’s first two touchdown passes against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday to give New Orleans an early lead.
Both plays featured everything Saints coach Sean Payton and his staff spent the summer talking up about Cook. On the first score, Cook caught a pass from Drew Brees that was thrown high above his ahead (and the 49ers linebacker covering him), secured the ball, and then slipped a tackle to cut into the open field and outrace the San Francisco defense to dash into the end zone. Check it out at this link, or in the video embedded below:
On New Orleans’ next possession, Cook’s athleticism was again on display with another touchdown grab. Cook beat his defender off the line of scrimmage and streaked towards the end zone, giving Brees an easy lay-up lob for six points. But they paid for it with an illegal hit by a 49ers defensive back, who came flying in and struck Cook near his helmet as they both fell to the ground. Cook was slow to get up but celebrated his big play before walking to the Saints medical tent for further evaluation. Stay tuned for an update on his status. Here’s his second highlight play:
