After a pair of productive seasons with the Raiders, the expectation was that tight end Jared Cook would keep things rolling with the Saints after signing with New Orleans as a free agent.
Cook caught 15 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns in six games before suffering an ankle injury that kept him out of the team’s last two games. The Saints had a bye in Week Nine and Cook returned to work this week with an eye on starting fresh for the second half of the year.
“A lot of times, the second half of the season is looked at as a new opportunity, the slate’s clean, a chance to start over,” Cook said, via NOLA.com. “I’m just looking at it as a new opportunity and a way to start with a clean slate and pick up production from here.”
Cook and the entire Saints offense had to adjust to quarterback Drew Brees’s absence after he injured his right thumb in Week Two. Brees returned in Week Eight and the team put up a season-high 510 yards. Cook didn’t say if he’ll be healthy enough to play this week, but the Falcons defense would offer a good setting for Cook to embark on a more productive path.