There’s a 98-day stretch between us and the start of the New Orleans Saints‘ 2025 regular season, and we’re counting down the days by looking back on some of the most iconic plays in franchise history. This time, our Saints Play of the Day is the 98-yard touchdown pass from Drew Brees to Brandin Cooks back in 2016, which you can watch here.
It was a classic grab-and-go reception by Cooks streaking down the left sideline. Brees dropped back to throw from his own end zone and found Cooks in one-on-one coverage against cornerback Sean Smith. Once Cooks put a step on his opponent, he was gone, and safety Reggie Nelson wasn’t able to make up the distance in the open field.
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Cooks broke a Saints record that had stood since their inaugural 1967 season on this play, outgaining Walter Roberts’ 96-yard catch to achieve the longest play from scrimmage in team history. And he just returned to the Saints this offseason after spending time with the New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans, and Dallas Cowboys. They’re hoping he can still uncork some big plays downfield like this one.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: 2025 Saints season countdown: Brandin Cooks’ TD is the Play of the Day