Moving from Oakland to New Orleans was as much a personal choice

Pro Bowl tight end Jared Cook.“Location. Quarterback. Offense Drew Lock Jersey ,” Cook began. “It’s important that at this point in my career — I think it’s awesome — that I’m closer to home. Drew Brees is a great quarterback, approaches the game like true vet and like a true perfectionist. He does all the little thigs right.“I also have a chance to come in right now and make an impact,” Cook added Wednesday, a day after formally agreeing to a reported two-year, $15.5 million free-agent contract with New Orleans. “I have an opportunity to come in and be a huge part of a prolific and high-powered offense.”Cook complimented the Raiders for the way they played to his strengths and helped him have the best campaign of his 10-year career last season. He knew there were inherent risks in leaving a good situation. But he said those risks were mitigated considerably by what New Orleans had to offer.The Saints have been among NFL leaders in offense since coach Sean Payton began designing the plays and Brees began executing them back in 2006. There have been some seasons, particularly while Jimmy Graham was on the roster, when the tight end position accounted for a significant portion of the passing offense.But that did not happen for the Saints’ eighth-ranked offense last season. Three tight ends — Ben Watson, Josh Hill and Dan Arnold — combined for 63 catches for 735 yards and four touchdowns. And Watson, who led the position group with 35 catches for 400 yards and two TDs, has retired.The 6-foot-5, 254-pound Cook caught 68 passes for 896 yards and six touchdowns with Oakland last season and was named to the Pro Bowl for the first time.“The last few years I’ve been able to kind of learn under one offense, play with one quarterback http://www.broncosauthorizedshops.com/authentic-dre_mont-jones-jersey , get to know that one quarterback pretty well,” Cook said. “That’s been the biggest different in the transition of my career as of late — and they actually used me what I’m good at.”Cook said Raiders coach Jon Gruden “found ways to expose matchups all over the field. He found ways to move me around in different positions to actually help me and make me more versatile.”In Payton’s first NFL job in Philadelphia, he worked under Gruden, and the two offensive-minded coaches have philosophical similarities. Payton also is known for shifting players’ roles — sometimes considerably — from week to week in search of favorable matchups.Cook was well aware of that because his tight ends coach in Oakland was Frank Smith, who worked on Payton’s staff in New Orleans from 2010-14. Cook said Smith often would touch on his experience with New Orleans when they talked football.“So, I knew a lot about the Saints and the guys in that building before I got down there,” Cook said.Another attraction was the opportunity to stress a secondary in tandem with Saints top receiver Michael Thomas.“It’s going to be huge for both of us,” Cook said. “I like his mentality. That’s something that you don’t find in a lot of receivers —that, ‘I’m going to go get mine, and I’m going to go get this and nobody’s going to be able to stop me —and I think that’s important to have in this league.”Cook, who turns 32 next month, was born in Alabama and grew up outside Atlanta T.J. Hockenson Jersey , where he often watched the Falcons practice from a hilltop with his father. He played in college at South Carolina and began his NFL career with Tennessee, which traded with New England to get him during the third round of the 2009 draft.He spent his first four seasons in Tennessee, where in 2011 he had 49 catches for 759 yards and three touchdowns.Cook later spent three seasons with the St. Louis Rams and one season with Green Bay before joining Oakland two seasons ago. In his career, Cook has 425 catches for 5,464 yards and 25 touchdowns.Being back near the Southeast puts Cook, who is married with children, in more manageable proximity to extended family and friends, he said. He sees that not as a distraction, but rather as a way to focus on football with greater peace of mind.“I have a bigger support system. I have more people around me and more family around me that can kind of help with daily life a little bit more,” Cook said. “It’s going to help me and my family out quite a bit.” A look at some key fantasy football questions going into Week 11:WHICH UNDER-THE-RADAR PLAYERS HAVE THE BEST CHANCE FOR A BIG GAME THIS WEEK?Giants QB Eli Manning has a juicy Week 11 matchup against the Buccaneers, who have given up multiple TDs to QBs in seven of nine games. Other Giants you should consider starting this week include wideout Sterling Shepard and tight end Evan Engram. The Bucs can’t stop WRs and TEs, and have yielded the second-most fantasy Points Per Game (FPPG) to both positions.You can stick a fork in the Raiders. They’re done and should be targeted in fantasy football every week. The Cardinals Zach Brown Jersey , their Week 11 opponent, have a rookie and veteran that have the potential of having a big game against them.Christian Kirk is averaging just under seven targets per game over the past four weeks. Despite his quiet Week 10 against the Chiefs, he had averaged just over 65 receiving yards in his previous four games. He’s an excellent route runner with good hands and should be considered a trade target in dynasty leagues.Larry Fitzgerald slumped badly earlier this season but he’s averaging just under 10 targets over the past four weeks and has 23 receptions and two TDs during that time frame.The Raiders have surrendered multiple TDs to the WR position in seven straight games. Tight end Ricky Seals-Jones has a good matchup against the silver and black. Tight ends have caught 18 passes and scored four TDs against Oakland over the past three weeks.Ravens RB Alex Collins could be a sneaky play against the Bengals, who’ve given up 13 total TDs to RBs this season. QB Joe Flacco’s Week 11 status is not known (hip) and if either Lamar Jackson or Robert Griffin III start in his place, the Ravens might lean on their running game a bit more.ANY GOOD BUY LOW OPTIONS TO FOCUS ON AS TRADE DEADLINES APPROACH?Corey Davis, WR, Titans: The Titans averaged just over 15 points per game for the first seven weeks of their season. They’ve averaged 31 points over the past two weeks and Davis has averaged 10 targets and 90.5 receiving yards during that time. Davis is fourth with eight targets inside the 10 this season. With the Titans offense finally showing some life, look for Davis to continue to have some upside.Sony Michel, RB, Patriots: For many fantasy owners the bloom may be off the rose when it comes to Michel, but the Patriots have shown that when he’s healthy they’re going to give him the ball. He averaged just over 22 carries, 4.72 yards per carry and scored four TDs from Week 4 to Week 6. Fantasy football playoffs take place from Week 14 to Week 16 in most leagues and he faces the Dolphins in Week 14 and the Bills in Week 16. Both have been very friendly to the run.ANY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TRADE TARGETS BASED ON REST OF SEASON SCHEDULES?Cam Newton Kyler Murray Jersey , QB, Panthers: Newton has scored the eighth-most fantasy points among QBs this season and has future matchups against the Buccaneers, Browns, Saints and Falcons. The Browns are 17th in FPPG allowed to QBs, but the other three teams are in the top 4 in points allowed to the position.Emmanuel Sanders, WR, Broncos: Sanders has scored the 11th most fantasy points among WRs. With the Broncos trade of Demaryius Thomas to the Texans, Sanders will continue to be heavily targeted in the passing game. He still has favorable matchups against the 49ers, who’ve yielded 14 TDs to WRs and the Browns, who’ve allowed the seventh most FPPG to WRs this season. In Week 16, which is usually championship week in fantasy football, Sanders will have a very favorable matchup against the Raiders. In addition Byron Murphy Jersey , Phillip Lindsay, RB for the Broncos, should also take advantage of Denver’s soft schedule down the stretch and should also be considered a trade target.WITH COOPER KUPP OUT FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON IS THERE A RAMS WR THAT COULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF HIS ABSENCE?His target share is tough to predict, but look for Josh Reynolds, who has big-play potential, to play some of his reps out of the slot, where he’ll absorb some of Kupp’s targets. In his last game with Kupp on the sidelines he caught three passes for 42 yards, but two of those catches were for TDs.