The San Francisco 49ers are 2-0 and playing as well as any team in the league entering Week 3 of the NFL season.
They’ll take on the Arizona Cardinals this Sunday while dealing with a plethora of injuries, particularly at wide receiver.
San Francisco is already without Ricky Pearsall and De’Zhaun Stribling. The team also placed Demarcus Robinson on IR this week while continuing to navigate Mike Evans’ hip injury that forced him to leave Week 2’s win over the Miami Dolphins.
49ers Sign Veteran WR
While Evans’ injury is not serious and there’s a good chance he’ll play this Sunday, the 49ers still went out and made a move, signing 12-year veteran Brandin Cooks to the practice squad.
Source: free-agent WR Brandin Cooks is signing with the 49ers practice squad, initially to get up to speed for games. It is year 13 for the former first-round pick from Oregon State who now is 189 yards short of 10,000 receiving yards for his NFL career. pic.twitter.com/oJ93YEdLFU
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 22, 2026
Cooks has played for six teams, but he spent four seasons with the New Orleans Saints and recorded three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons.
Over his career, Cooks has caught 734 passes for 9,811 yards and 60 touchdowns.
“Just awesome to get a veteran receiver here….been a fan of him for the last 10 years,” 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said. “He’s had a Hell of a career, been a Hell of a player. You know we’re down on guys so it’s awesome to get a guy that’s done it before and done it for a long time.”
Cooks Makes Strong Statement on Brock Purdy
Now that Cooks will join an offense led by star quarterback Brock Purdy, it was only fitting that reporters asked him about his new teammate after he spoke to the media for the first time Wednesday.
“Yeah, he’s ballin,” Cooks said. “Seems like he’s playing at a whole other level, and that’s saying a lot because he’s been playing at a high level since the moment he got to this league.”
Brock Purdy Receives Strong Message From New 49ers WR Brandin Cooks